Aspects of thermoregulatory physiology pertinent to hyperthermic treatment of cancer.

Local hyperthermia is relatively safe, while whole-body hyperthermia is potentially dangerous because the therapeutically effective elevation of body temperature is close to the tolerable limit to hyperthermia beyond which permanent damage may be caused. Here consideration is given to the most reliable index of body temperature during hyperthermia and the techniques for raising body temperature. The possibility of effecting local brain cooling and thereby increasing the margin of safety during whole-body hyperthermia is also considered.