Can Radio Waves Treat Cancer?

(AP) PITTSBURGH The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is about to begin tests to find out whether heat from radio waves can be used to kill cancer cells without harming other cells and without negative side effects.

Doctors already kill cancer cells by sending radiofrequency currents through a needle inserted in the target area to raise the temperature to the point at which the cells die, a process known as radiofrequency ablation.

What makes the new device — which was developed by someone with no medical background — promising is that it would be noninvasive, said Dr. David Geller, co-director of UPMC's Liver Cancer Center.

"This has the potential to be a new modality in cancer treatment," Geller said Monday as he demonstrated the machine to be used on lab rats. "There's nothing like it out there."

John Kanzius, 61, a former partner at Jet Broadcasting Company Inc. in Erie, developed the idea and is seeking patents for his prototype device. Geller said he was impressed by Kanzius' scientific approach, despite his having no medical training.

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