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Francis Medical - Thermal Water Vapor Energy Technology
Thermal water vapor energy technology is a breakthrough therapy designed to use phase shift energy, stored in sterile water vapor, to convectively transfer thermal energy to cancerous tissue, causing cell death. Through this process, damage to surrounding structures is minimized or eliminated by respecting the natural boundaries of the prostate. The outcome will be a revolutionary cancer therapy that is tough on cancer but gentle on patients.*
Cancer ablation by water vapor utilizes the vast amount of energy generated when liquid water changes to water vapor (steam).
As water converts to vapor or steam at ~100°C an exponential phase shift occurs, with the resulting water vapor carrying more than 5x the energy of water of the same mass.
When the vapor is delivered to the targeted tissue, the stored thermal energy is released onto the cancerous cells as the vapor is condensing back to its liquid state. This energy transfer causes immediate disruption (ablation) of the cellular membrane, ultimately leading to cell death.
Most of today’s ablative technologies utilize thermal energy emanating from a single point that is either hot or cold. The thermal energy then transfers from cell to cell (conduction) and gradually gets cooler (or warmer) the further you get from the source. This results in heating (or cooling) that is uneven and can be difficult to control.
Water vapor technology behaves very differently. When administered under pressure, the vapor moves through the interstitial space between the cells (convection) in a few seconds. The energy is evenly distributed throughout the vaporized area and ablates uniformly as the vapor condenses back into water.
The prostate, a walnut sized gland located between the bladder and the penis just in front of the rectum, is encased within fibromuscular layers of cells called the prostate capsule. Within the prostate are areas (zones) separated by what are commonly referred to as pseudocapsules.
Traditional prostate cancer therapies can result in erectile dysfunction or incontinence by damaging nerves or other tissue outside the prostate.1 In contrast, water vapor technology is uniquely designed to work inside the walls of the prostate, with the intent of minimizing or eliminating thermal damage to the nerves and surrounding prostate tissue.
A distinction between thermal water vapor and other ablative technologies: when vapor is released within one of the prostate zones it intends to “respect” the prostate capsule and pseudocapsule boundaries by staying within the zone it was released.
This ability to stay within the zone of application is critical when ablating prostate cancer because it will prevent the vapor’s ablative energy from escaping outside of the prostate.
By staying inside the targeted zone, the outcome should be a reduction in the incidences of erectile dysfunction or incontinence, commonly experienced with traditional prostate cancer therapies.