Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT)
Laser interstitial thermal therapy guides a laser fibre through a small skull hole, monitored by real-time MRI, to heat and destroy deep brain tumours a surgeon could not safely reach.
MRI thermometry-guided ablation (NeuroBlate, Visualase) for deep-seated or recurrent gliomas, radiation necrosis, and brain metastases. Case series suggest survival comparable to resection for selected recurrent glioblastoma; may transiently open the blood-brain barrier, enabling drug delivery (LAANTERN registry, phase 2 combinations with immunotherapy). No randomised evidence yet.
How it works
Stereotactically placed laser fibre delivers thermal energy; MR thermometry maps the ablation zone in real time.
- Minimally invasive access to deep lesions
- Short hospital stay
- Possible BBB disruption for adjuvant drugs
- Lesion size limit (~3 cm)
- Oedema after ablation
- No randomised trials
Latest papers
topQuery for this technology: (TITLE:"Laser interstitial thermal therapy" OR ABSTRACT:"Laser interstitial thermal therapy" OR TITLE:"LITT" OR ABSTRACT:"LITT") AND (cancer OR tumor OR tumour OR oncology OR carcinoma OR lymphoma OR leukemia OR leukaemia OR myeloma OR sarcoma OR melanoma OR glioma). Results are unfiltered search hits about Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT), not a curated reading list.