Potential of UWB Radar Systems in Monitoring Liver Ablation: A Phantom Model Study

Ultra-wideband (UWB) radar differential imaging has a potential to be one of non-invasive, real-time, and non-ionizing methods for radiofrequency ablation (RFA) monitoring. In this study we developed a novel 3D UWB radar system for monitoring of the ablation zones (AZ) sizes and shapes. The system was first numerically tested on both homogeneous and heterogeneous patient models, followed by corresponding experiments. We applied a 3D Delay-and-Sum (DAS) algorithm to reconstruct and locate AZs, supported by an original method to determine average permittivity for heterogeneous DAS reconstructions. Additionally, an algorithm estimating the AZ size and shape was developed. The system demonstrated high precision with a monitoring error of 1.2 ± 0.9 mm in simulations and 1.3 ± 0.8 mm in ex vivo experiments. AZ volume and shape were approximated with relative errors of 14.8 ± 9.5 % in numerical models and 29.6 ± 24.3 % in experiments. These results indicate that the developed UWB radar system is a promising method for accurate RFA monitoring.