915 MHz microwave interstitial hyperthermia. Part III: Phase II clinical results.

From October 1989 to October 1991, 16 patients (17 tumours) with locally advanced carcinomas of the oral tongue and eight patients with second carcinomas of the base of tongue in previously irradiated areas, have been treated by means of an interstitial hyperthermia-brachytherapy combination in a phase II clinical trial. Each miniature microwave antenna of our hyperthermia system, called HIMCAR, is used both for heating and for thermal measurements by microwave radiometry at 3 and 9 GHz (see Part I). Among these 25 lesions (21 T2, 4 T3), 21 showed a complete response (15/17 locally advanced carcinomas and 6/8 second carcinomas in previously irradiated areas). The toxicity was not severe (less than 10%). A French multicentre phase III study is now under way.