Method and apparatus for the diagnostic and composite pulsed heating and photodynamic therapy treatment

A method for therapeutically treating cancerous cells within a tissue having a plurality of vessels for supplying blood thereto, comprising the steps of:

• providing a pulsed, noncoherent light beam;
• treating the cancerous cells with a photosensitive agent;
• and
• directing the light beam to the tissue, and to the plurality of vessels surrounding the cancerous cells limiting blood supply to the cancerous cells.

A method for providing therapeutic treatment of cancerous cells within a tissue having a plurality of vessels for supplying blood thereto, comprising the steps of:

• providing a source of light;
• treating the tissue with a photosensitive agent having a higher accumulation effect in cancerous cells than in normal cells;
• directing the light to the tissue treated with the photosensitive agent to generate oxygen in a singlet state;
• heating the tissue with the light to accelerate treatment;
• and
• directing the light to the plurality of vessels surrounding the cancerous cells to limit blood supply to the cancerous cells.

An apparatus for therapeutically treating cancerous cells within a tissue having a plurality of vessels for supplying blood thereto, comprising:

• a housing, including a window through which light can pass;
• a pulsed, noncoherent source of light disposed in the housing;
• and
• a reflector, disposed in the housing, that directs the light through the window, wherein the light is used for photodynamic therapy and to heat the blood vessels supplying blood to the tumor, thereby limiting the supply of blood to the tumor.

An apparatus for diagnosing and therapeutically treating cancerous cells within a tissue having a plurality of vessels for supplying blood thereto, comprising:

• a housing, including a window through which light can pass;
• a source of light, capable of being operated in both a continuous mode and a pulsed mode, disposed in the housing;
• and
• a reflector, disposed in the housing, that directs the light through the window.

A method for diagnosing cancerous cells within a tissue, comprising the steps of:

• directing light to the tissue;
• treating the tissue with a photosensitive agent having a higher accumulation effect in cancerous cells than in normal cells;
• and
• illuminating the tissue with the filtered light beam to provide a visual indication of cancerous cells.

An apparatus for the therapeutic treatment and diagnosis of cancerous cells within a tissue, comprising:

• a light source;
• a filter system disposed in a path of the light to limit the light to a range of wavelengths;
• and
• a reflector to focus the light beam and to conduct the light beam through the filter system, wherein the light is used for photodynamic therapy and to heat the blood vessels supplying blood to the tumor, thereby limiting the supply of blood to the tumor.