Brachytherapy positioning system

An apparatus, comprising:

• an elongated member defining a lumen therethrough, said elongated member being configured for placement in a passageway in a patient's body;
• a control member disposed in said lumen of said elongated member and terminating with an end cap, said end cap being spaced apart from said elongated member, said control member and said end cap being arranged to be selectively positioned relative to said elongated member;
• a positioning element including at least six wires extending from said elongated member to said end cap;
• and
• wherein said positioning element is placed in a radially retracted state by applying a force with said control member to push said end cap away from said elongated member, and said wires each generally assume an arched shape to provide a radially expanded state of said positioning element relative to a centerline axis of said control member upon removal of said force, said wires each being operable to move independent of one another when transitioning between said retracted state and said expanded state.

A method, comprising:

• advancing an apparatus having a positioning element through a passageway of a patient's body to a treatment site, the positioning element being in a retracted state during said advancing and including a plurality of wires each under tension with a longitudinal axis generally parallel to a centerline axis of the apparatus during said advancing;
• expanding the positioning element after reaching the treatment site, the wires each assuming a predisposed shape during said expanding in response to removal of a force applied to the wires with the apparatus, the wires each engaging a surface surrounding the passageway to position the apparatus during said expanding;
• and
• delivering a radiation source with the apparatus to treat the treatment site after said expanding.

A method, comprising:

• providing an apparatus including a control member extending through an elongated member, and a positioning element, the control member terminating with an end cap positioned distal to the elongated member, the positioning element including a plurality of wires extending from the elongated member to the end cap;
• establishing a radially retracted state of the positioning element by applying a force with the control member to push the end cap away from the elongated member;
• advancing the apparatus through a passageway of a patient's body to a treatment site;
• positioning the apparatus relative to the passageway by releasing the control member to establish a radially expanded state of the positioning element, the wires each radially extending away from the control member in the expanded state a greater distance than in the retracted state to engage a surface surrounding the passageway, the wires each moving independent of one another when transitioning from the retracted state to the expanded state;
• and
• delivering a radiation source with the apparatus to treat the treatment site after said positioning.