ApOtEl: Development of a software for electroporation based therapy planning

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to describe the implementation of a software application, called ApOtEl, developed for needle electrodes positioning optimization for electrochemotherapy procedures in the treatment of cutaneous and subcutaneous tumors. The software was developed using MATLAB®, and it optimizes the needle-type electrodes positioning configurations, through the study of the analytical electric field, using Laplace equation in a homogeneous bi-dimensional environment. The optimization was based on requirements chosen to guarantee the tumor total coverage and to minimize healthy neighboring tissues damage. An optimization function was created to orientate the electrochemotherapy application, and the best option available in all configurations generated by the distance variations between electrodes and positioning orientations was determined. The software provides, by the entry of tumor dimensions, the optimized distances for positioning needle-type electrodes, as well as the representation of the electric field distribution and intensity. Representation of the electrodes positioning and instructions for the procedure to facilitate the procedure planning are provided.