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Early detection of breast cancer is required to increase the chances of a successful treatment. However, current breast-imaging systems such as X-Ray mammography, breast ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging have technological limitations so that novel solutions are needed to address this major societal problem. The current paper considers ultra-wideband (UWB) microwave radiation in the frequency band from 1 to 9 GHz. Given by the non-ionizing nature of microwaves frequent check-ups are more feasible. In this work, we propose algorithms for qualitative and quantitative microwave breast imaging for a transmission-based UWB system. Based on numerical and experimental data, the performance of the algorithms has been investigated and compared. Finally, microwave images obtained during an initial patient study are discussed relative to corresponding X-ray images.

The purpose of the study was to validate the simulation model for a microwave thermal ablation in ex vivo liver tissue. The study aims to show that heat transfer due to the flow of tissue water during ablation in ex vivo tissue is not negligible. Ablation experiments were performed in ex vivo porcine liver with microwave powers of 60 W to 100 W. During the procedure, the temperature was recorded in the liver sample at different distances to the applicator using a fiber-optic thermometer. The position of the probes was identified by CT imaging and transferred to the simulation. The simulation of the heat distribution in the liver tissue was carried out with the software CST Studio Suite. The results of the simulation with different flow coefficients were compared with the results of the ablation experiments using the Bland–Altman analysis. The analysis showed that the flow coefficient of 90,000 W/(K*m3) can be considered as the most suitable value for clinically used powers. The presented simulation model can be used to calculate the temperature distribution for microwave ablation in ex vivo liver tissue.

Recent developments of microwave ablation systems pursue a treatment monitoring technique in order to provide a curative therapy option for cancer patients. In this paper, such an approach is realized by a dual-mode microwave applicator that enables the permittivity extraction of the tissue surrounding the applicator during the intervention. The additional sensing mode facilitates the positioning of the applicator by detecting dielectric contrasts to indicate the presence of tumors as well as providing tissue state information during the thermal therapy. This feature is based on a one-port calibration scheme which is applied before each intervention. Measurements of various sodium chloride solutions reveal a measurement error below 4%. Furthermore, ex-vivo liver ablation experiments with the input powers of 10 and 20 W are performed to evaluate the treatment monitoring feature and ablation efficacy. A significant permittivity drop down to 82% of the initial permittivity value can be observed after 2 min of ablation. The achieved ablation zones show a preferably spherical shape and clinically relevant volumes with a maximum size of 7.1 cm3.

Microwave spectroscopy using open-ended coaxial probes is widely used for the characterization of biological tissues. In this work, we use this technique for the analysis of breast biopsies in the frequency band from 500 MHz to 20 GHz. In total, we studied 77 independent measurements from nine patients. The analysis contains X-Ray images as well as the histology finding in terms of BI-RADS classification (B2, B3 and B5). The main goal of this work is to confirm the existing knowledge in terms of dielectric properties of breast tissue as well as to describe the selection process of relevant biopsy samples in the clinical workflow. The variability of dielectric properties is demonstrated in biopsy samples with a small size.

The concept of a novel dual-mode microwave applicator for diagnosis and thermal ablation treatment of tumorous tissue is presented in this paper. This approach is realized by integrating a planar resonator array to, firstly, detect abnormalities by a relative dielectric analysis, and secondly, perform a highly localized thermal ablation. A further essential advantage is addressed by designing the applicator to be MRI compatible to provide a multimodal imaging procedure. Investigations for an appropriate frequency range lead to the use of much higher operating frequencies between 5 GHz and 10 GHz, providing a significantly lower power consumption for microwave ablation of only 20 W compared to commercial available applicators.

Laser-induced thermotherapy (LITT) is used to treat liver cancer by inserting a laser applicator into the tumor and applying radiation to heat and destroy it. A mathematical model for the simulation of LITT is compared to experimental results with ex-vivo pig livers.

Recent developments on microwave ablation aim to provide a curative intervention instead of being applied as palliative care. For this purpose, information about the temperature development and coagulation status of the targeted tissue during the treatment is needed. This approach is pursued with an advanced ablation applicator that detects relative permittivity changes by applying a one port calibration scheme. Dielectric properties are extracted at the tip of the applicator with air and two NaCl solutions as calibration standards. Measurements with liquid phantoms mimicking the dielectric contrast of tumor and normal tissue exhibit a relative resolution of $\Delta\varepsilon_{r}=3.4\ \%$ . Moreover, the ablation performance is evaluated by ablating ex-vivo bovine liver tissue with an input power of 10 W for four minutes. Temperature probes are placed in varied radial distances to monitor the temperature distribution of the ablation zone resulting in a lesion zone of around 2 cm3.

This paper presents an UWB microwave breast imaging prototype system that operates in the frequency range from 1 GHz to 9 GHz. In contrast to other microwave breast imaging systems we propose a two-dimensional scanning of the compressed breast based on UWB bowtie antennas. This approach enables a direct comparison with measurements obtained from X-ray mammography. In this work, we will describe the setup of the breast imaging system including its main components and basic signal processing steps. Qualitative imaging results are presented for a tissue mimicking phantom containing four inclusions with a small dielectric contrast. Finally, spectroscopic measurements up to 20 GHz are presented at the end of this study to characterize the material properties of the inclusions and the surrounding material.

Is it true that ultra-wideband (UWB) microwave radiation provides independent information about human tissue compared to conventional diagnostic modalities such as ultrasound, X-Ray or MRI? The goal of the present work is to address this question in a clinical study by means of concurrent UWB microwave measurements (0.5 GHz-20 GHz) and ultrasound measurements (18 MHz) on freshly excised breast biopsies. This paper also describes the clinical workflow and introduces a sample holder that accounts for the special requirements of UWB microwave measurements and ultrasound measurements.

The purpose of this study was to develop a thermometry software tool for temperature monitoring during laser-induced interstitial thermotherapy (LITT). C++ programming language and several libraries including DICOM Toolkit, Grassroots DICOM library, Insight Segmentation and Registration Toolkit, Visualization Toolkit and Quasar Toolkit were used. The software’s graphical user interface creates windows displaying the temperature map and the coagulation extent in the tissue, determined by the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) thermometry with the echo planar imaging sequence and a numerical simulation based on the radiation and heat transfer in biological tissues, respectively. The software was evaluated applying the MRI-guided LITT to ex vivo pig liver and simultaneously measuring the temperature through a fiber-optic thermometer as reference. Using the software, the temperature distribution determined by the MRI method was compared with the coagulation extent simulation. An agreement was shown between the MRI temperature map and the simulated coagulation extent. Furthermore, the MRI-based and simulated temperatures agreed with the measured one – a correlation coefficient of 0.9993 and 0.9996 was obtained, respectively. The precision of the MRI temperature amounted to 2.4°C. In conclusion, the software tool developed in the present study can be applied for monitoring and controlling the LITT procedure in ex vivo tissues.

Carbon-rubber phantoms have recently been introduced as tissue-mimicking materials for microwave biomedical applications. In contrast to other phantom materials, carbon-rubber materials allow easy construction of heterogeneous phantoms with time-stable dielectric properties. However, the fabrication of large solid phantoms may pose a challenge. This paper investigates a large dielectric carbon-rubber phantom with four inclusions with an average dielectric contrast of only 10%. In order to comparatively evaluate the quality of the phantom material, MRI, CT, X-ray and UWB microwave measurements have been performed. The measurement results of all modalities are here presented and discussed.

Surgery is currently considered the treatment of choice for patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRLM) when resectable. The majority of these patients can also benefit from systemic chemotherapy. Recently, local or regional therapies such as thermal ablations have been used with acceptable outcomes. We searched the medical literature to identify studies and reviews relevant to radiofrequency (RF) ablation, microwave (MW) ablation and laser-induced thermotherapy (LITT) in terms of local progression, survival indexes and major complications in patients with CRLM. Reviewed literature showed a local progression rate between 2.8 and 29.7 % of RF-ablated liver lesions at 12-49 months follow-up, 2.7-12.5 % of MW ablated lesions at 5-19 months follow-up and 5.2 % of lesions treated with LITT at 6-month follow-up. Major complications were observed in 4-33 % of patients treated with RF ablation, 0-19 % of patients treated with MW ablation and 0.1-3.5 % of lesions treated with LITT. Although not significantly different, the mean of 1-, 3- and 5-year survival rates for RF-, MW- and laser ablated lesions was (92.6, 44.7, 31.1 %), (79, 38.6, 21 %) and (94.2, 61.5, 29.2 %), respectively. The median survival in these methods was 33.2, 29.5 and 33.7 months, respectively. Thermal ablation may be an appropriate alternative in patients with CRLM who have inoperable liver lesions or have operable lesions as an adjunct to resection. However, further competitive evaluation should clarify the efficacy and priority of these therapies in patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases.

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of chronic liver disease (CLD) in a multivariate analysis of associated risk factors in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) using transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). Materials and methods: A total of 145 patients with HCC (99 men, 46 women; mean age: 63 years ±8.1; age range: 46-84 years) underwent 598 TACE procedures. The presence of CLD, number and location of lesions, tumor size, Child-Pugh score, vascularity, portal involvement and alpha fetoprotein value were analyzed using the multivariate regression model. Cox regression was used for survival analysis. Results: The median survival time was 26.7 months, and 78.6% of all treated lesions showed tumor responses. The presence of CLD (OR 2.12, P=0.004), Child-Pugh score B (OR 2.24, P=0.002), alpha fetoprotein >100ng/dl (OR 1.18, P5cm (OR 4.12, P=0.002) and hypervascularity (OR 7.94, P=0.003) were significant effective factors for a local response when analyzed using a multivariate logistic model. Multivariate survival analysis using Cox's regression model during the median follow-up period of 25 months (range: 1-42 months) demonstrated a significant difference in survival rates (P values 5cm and hypervascularity statistically led to a significant effect in tumor response in HCC patients treated with TACE. Patient gender, location of lesion and involvement of portal vein showed no significant difference in response.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of contrast material and retrospective ECG-gating on radiation dose in an adult cardiac dual-energy computed tomography (DECT). Sixty-two patients underwent CT cardiac examination with a Somatom Definition Flash DECT using tube voltages of 100 kV without filter and 140 kV with a tin filter (mean effective mA s: arterial 72.39 and 62.94, venous 93.21 and 78.45, and late phase 134.5 and 118.2). The arterial and late phases were examined with retrospective ECG-gating, but gating was not used for the venous phase. Seventy milliliters (70 ml) iodinated contrast material (CM) was injected into the patient during examination. The effective doses (ED) were calculated from dose-length-product (DLP) and computed tomographic dose index volume (CTDIvol) using the latest k-factor (0.028). Pearson's correlation coefficient was used for statistical tests on continuous variables. Mean CTDIvol and DLP were lower in the late phase (10.15 ± 1.5 mGy and 202.9 ± 23 mGy cm) compared to the arterial phase (19.69 ± 3 mGy and 394 ± 90 mGy cm). Differences between the arterial and late phase were statistically significant (p = 0.005), and mean values for the late phase were 48.5% lower than mean values for the arterial phase. Mean CTDIvol and DLP were lower in venous (7.72 ± 1 mGy and 154.3 ± 17 mGy cm) compared to late phase (10.15 ± 1.5 mGy and 202.9 ± 23 mGy cm). The difference between venous and late phase was statistically significant (p < 0.001). The mean results for the venous phase were 24% lower than those for the late phase. This study shows that contrast material (CM) absorbs radiation significantly and increases dose by 48.5% in an adult cardiac dual-energy CT with retrospective ECG-gating. Care must be taken to determine the type, concentration, and volume of CM used for the scan. The dual-energy non-ECG-gated technique decreased radiation dose by 24% compared to the ECG-gated technique. ECG-gated cardiac examination should be limited to patients with strong clinical indications. SNR and HU increased with decreasing energy. The image noise values showed a negligible difference in the arterial and late phase datasets, and this did not affect the diagnostic quality of the image evaluation.

Aim: To evaluate tumor response in patients with hypovascular liver metastases from the most common primary sites treated with chemoembolization. Materials & methods: Chemoembolization was performed in 190 patients (five groups) who had hypovascular liver metastases from the colon (n = 66), breast (n = 40), uveal malignant melanoma (n = 20), pancreas (n = 48) and stomach (n = 16). Surgical resection of primary sites had been performed for all included patients. Tumor response, survival statistics from the first chemoembolization using Kaplan–Meier method and progression rate of embolized lesions were evaluated by analysis of variance with Tukey’s post hoc test. Results: Multiple comparison between the groups showed no statistical significant difference in local tumor response (H: 9.23; p > 0.05). Survival indices of the patients, including survival rate, progression-free survival rate, median survival time and time to progression, demonstrated significant difference between the groups during the follow-up period (H: 9.7; p = 0.045). The progression rate of treated liver metastases from colon, breast, uvea, pancreas and stomach were 16.6, 17.5, 30.0, 25.0 and 32.0%, respectively (p = 0.002). Conclusion: Hypovascular liver metastases treated with chemoembolization may demonstrate equal local response, but are significantly different in rate of progression and survival.

Microwave sensors in medical environments play a significant role due to the contact-less and non-invasive sensing mechanism to determine dielectric properties of tissue. In this work, a theranostic sensor based on Split Ring Resonators (SRRs) is presented that provides two operation modes to detect and treat tumor cells, exemplary in the liver. For the detection mode, resonance frequency changes due to abnormalities are evaluated, and in the treatment mode, microwave ablation is performed. The planar sensor structure can be integrated into a needle like a surgery tool that evokes challenges concerning size limitations and biocompatibility. To meet the size requirements and provide a reasonable operating frequency, properties of oval shaped SRRs are investigated. By elongating the radius of the SRR in one direction, the resonance frequency can be decreased significantly compared to circular SRR by a factor of two below 12 GHz. In order to validate the detection and treatment characteristics of the sensor, full wave simulations and measurements are examined. Clear resonance shifts are detected for loading the sensor structures with phantoms mimicking healthy and malignant tissue. For treatment mode evaluation, ex vivo beef liver tissue was ablated leading to a lesion zone 1.2 cm × 1 cm × 0.3 cm with a three minute exposure of maximum 2.1 W.

The purpose of the study was to develop a simulation approach for laser-induced thermotherapy (LITT) that is based on mathematical models for radiation transport, heat transport, and tissue damage. The LITT ablation was applied to ex vivo pig liver tissue. Experiments were repeated with different laser powers, i.e., 22-34 W, and flow rates of the cooling water in the applicator system, i.e., 47-92 ml/min. During the procedure, the temperature was measured in the liver sample at different distances to the applicator as well as in the cooling circuit using a fiber optic thermometer. For validation, the simulation results were compared with the results of the laser ablation experiments in the ex vivo pig liver samples. The simulated and measured temperature curves presented a relatively good agreement. The Bland-Altman plot showed an average of temperature differences of -0.13 ∘C and 95%-limits-of-agreement of ±7.11 ∘C. The standard deviation amounted to ±3.63 ∘C. The accuracy of the developed simulation is comparable with the accuracy of the MR thermometry reported in other clinical studies. The simulation showed a significant potential for the application in treatment planning.

Radiation dose and image quality estimation of three X-ray volume imaging (XVI) systems. A total of 126 patients were examined using three XVI systems (groups 1–3) and their data were retrospectively analysed from 2007 to 2012. Each group consisted of 42 patients and each patient was examined using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), digital subtraction angiography (DSA) and digital fluoroscopy (DF). Dose parameters such as dose–area product (DAP), skin entry dose (SED) and image quality parameters such as Hounsfield unit (HU), noise, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) were estimated and compared using appropriate statistical tests. Mean DAP and SED were lower in recent XVI than its previous counterparts in CBCT, DSA and DF. HU of all measured locations was non-significant between the groups except the hepatic artery. Noise showed significant difference among groups (P

The aim of this study was to experimentally evaluate temperature monitoring with a Fluoroptic® temperature probe in the presence of laser irradiation from a Nd:YAG laser, which is mainly used for clinical MR-guided laser-induced interstitial thermotherapy. Temperature measurements were performed using a Fluoroptic® probe in comparison to a thermocouple probe in a gel phantom and an ex vivo pig liver at distances of 6.5 to 14 mm to the laser applicator (laser energy of 30.8 W). To evaluate the artifacts in the temperature measurement, the laser was turned on and off three times during the entire experiment. A comparison of the fiber-optic measurements with MR thermometry was also performed in pig liver by means of the proton resonance frequency method at a distance of 6 mm. Depending on the distance, the temperature measured by the fiber-optic probe deviated from the thermocouple probe temperature. The phantom deviations of 0.4 to 34.3 % were observed. The differences in the liver were smaller and ranged from 1.6 to 5.2 %. The Bland-Altman mean of differences between MR and fiber-optic temperature measurements was 0.02 °C and the 95 % limits of agreement value was ± 2.25°C. During laser application, considerable artifacts occurred in the Fluoroptic® measurements in short distances which was induced by laser energy absorption by the probe coating. No artifacts were verifiable at a distance of 14 mm in both mediums. The good conformity with MR thermometry resulted from the shorter turn-on times of the laser since the laser irradiation had only a minor effect on the measurements.

Purpose To develop a liver-mimicking MRI gel phantom for use in the development of temperature mapping and coagulation progress visualization tools needed for the thermal tumor ablation methods, including laser-induced interstitial thermotherapy (LITT) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA). Methods A base solution with an acrylamide concentration of 30 vol. % was prepared. Different components were added to the solution; among them are bovine hemoglobin and MR signal-enhancing contrast agents (Magnevist as T1 and Lumirem as T2 contrast agent) for adjustment of the optical absorption and MR relaxation times, respectively. The absorption was measured in samples with various hemoglobin concentrations (0%-7.5%) at different temperatures (25-80 degrees C) using the near-infrared spectroscopy, measuring the transmitted radiation through the sample. The relaxation times were measured in samples with various concentrations of T1 (0.025%-0.325%) and T2 (0.4%-1.6%) contrast agents at different temperatures (25-75 degrees C), through the MRI technique, acquiring images with specific sequences. The concentrations of the hemoglobin and contrast agents of the gel were adjusted so that its absorption coefficient and relaxation times are equivalent to those of liver. To this end, the absorption and relaxation times of the gel samples were compared to reference values, measured in an ex vivo porcine liver at different temperatures through the same methods used for the gel. For validation of the constructed phantom, the absorption and relaxation times were measured in samples containing the determined amounts of the hemoglobin and contrast agents and compared with the corresponding liver values. To qualitatively test the heat resistance of the phantom, it was heated with the LITT method up to approximately 120 degrees C and then was cut to find out if it has been melted. Results In contrast to liver, where the absorption change with temperature showed a sigmoidal form with a jump at T approximately equal 45 degrees C, the absorption of the gel varied slightly over the whole temperature range. However, the gel absorption presented a linear increase from approximately 1.8 to approximately 2.2 mm(-1) with the rising hemoglobin concentration. The gel relaxation times showed a linear decrease with the rising concentrations of the respective contrast agents. Conversely, with the rising temperature, both T1 and T2 increased linearly and showed almost the same trends as in liver. The concentrations of hemoglobin and T1 and T2 contrast agents were determined as 3.92 +/- 0.42 vol. %, 0.098 +/- 0.023 vol. %, and 2.980 +/- 0.067 vol. %, respectively. The measured ex vivo liver T1 value increased from approximately 300 to approximately 530 ms and T2 value from approximately 45 to approximately 52 ms over the temperature range. The phantom validation experiments resulted in absorption coefficients of 2.0-2.1 mm(-1) with variations of 1.5%-2.95% compared to liver below 50 degrees C, T1 of 246.6-597.2 ms and T2 of 40.8-67.1 ms over the temperature range of 25-75 degrees C. Using the Bland-Altman analysis, a difference mean of -6.1/1.9 ms was obtained for T1/T2 between the relaxation times of the phantom and liver. After heating the phantom with LITT, no evidence of melting was observed. Conclusions The constructed phantom is heat-resistant and MR-compatible and can be used as an alternative to liver tissue in the MR-guided thermal ablation experiments with laser to develop clinical tools for real-time monitoring and controlling the thermal ablation progress in liver.

Estimation of optical properties of biologic tissue is crucial for theoretical modeling of laser treatments in medicine. Tissue highly absorbs and scatters the light between 650 nm and 1300 nm, where the laser provides therapeutic effects. Among other properties, the characteristic of biological tissues to scatter the light traveling trough, is described by the anisotropy coefficient (g). The relationship between g and the distribution of the scattered light at different angles is described by Henyey-Greenstein phase function. The measurement of angular distribution of scattered light is performed by the goniometric technique. This paper describes the estimation of g and attenuation coefficient, μt, of swine liver at 850 nm, performed by an ad hoc designed goniometric-based system, where a spectrometer measures intensities of scattered light at fixed angles (0°, 30°, 45°, 60, 120°, 135° and 150°). Both one-term and two-term Henyey-Greenstein phase function have been employed to estimate anisotropy coefficient for forward (gfs) and backward scattering (gbs). Measurements are performed on samples of two thicknesses (60 um and 30 urn) to investigate the influence of this factor on g, and repeated 6 times for each thickness. The estimated values of gfs were 0.947 and 0.951 for thickness of 60 μm and 30 μm, respectively; the estimations of gfs were -0.498 and -0.270 for thickness of 60 μm and 30 μm, respectively. Moreover, μt of liver has been estimated (i.e., 90±20 cm(1)), through Lambert-Beer equation. The comparison of our results with data reported in literature encourages the use of the ad hoc designed tool for performing experiments on other tissue, and at other wavelengths.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate magnetic resonance (MR) temperature imaging of the laser-induced thermotherapy (LITT) comparing the proton resonance frequency (PRF) and T 1 thermometry methods. LITT was applied to a liver-mimicking acrylamide gel phantom. Temperature rise up to 70 °C was measured using a MR-compatible fiber-optic thermometer. MR imaging was performed by a 1.5-T scanner utilizing fast gradient echo sequences including a segmented echo planar imaging (seg-EPI) sequence for PRF and the following sequences for T 1 method: fast low-angle shot (FLASH), inversion recovery turbo flash (IRTF), saturation recovery turbo flash (SRTF), and true fast imaging (TRUFI). Temperature-induced change of the pixel values in circular regions of interest, selected on images under the temperature probe tip, was recorded. For each sequence, a calibration constant could be determined to be -0.0088 ± 0.0002 ppm °C(-1) (EPI), -1.15 ± 0.03 °C(-1) (FLASH), -1.49 ± 0.03 °C(-1) (IRTF), -1.21 ± 0.03 °C(-1) (SRTF), and -2.52 ± 0.12 °C(-1) (TRUFI). These constants were evaluated in further LITT experiments in phantom comparing the calculated temperatures with the fiber optic-measured ones; temperature precisions of 0.60 °C (EPI), 0.81 °C (FLASH), 1.85 °C (IRTF), 1.95 °C (SRTF), and 3.36 °C (TRUFI) were obtained. Furthermore, performing the Bland-Altman analysis, temperature accuracy was determined to be 0.23 °C (EPI), 0.31 °C (FLASH), 1.66 °C (IRTF), 1.19 °C (SRTF), and 3.20 °C (TRUFI). In conclusion, the seg-EPI sequence was found to be more convenient for MR temperature imaging of LITT due to its relatively high precision and accuracy. Among the T 1 method sequences, FLASH showed the highest accuracy and robustness.

To develop a liver-mimicking MRI gel phantom for use in the development of temperature mapping and coagulation progress visualization tools needed for the thermal tumor ablation methods, including laser-induced interstitial thermotherapy (LITT) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA).A base solution with an acrylamide concentration of 30 vol. % was prepared. Different components were added to the solution; among them are bovine hemoglobin and MR signal-enhancing contrast agents (Magnevist as T1 and Lumirem as T2 contrast agent) for adjustment of the optical absorption and MR relaxation times, respectively. The absorption was measured in samples with various hemoglobin concentrations (0%-7.5%) at different temperatures (25-80 degrees C) using the near-infrared spectroscopy, measuring the transmitted radiation through the sample. The relaxation times were measured in samples with various concentrations of T1 (0.025%-0.325%) and T2 (0.4%-1.6%) contrast agents at different temperatures (25-75 degrees C), through the MRI technique, acquiring images with specific sequences. The concentrations of the hemoglobin and contrast agents of the gel were adjusted so that its absorption coefficient and relaxation times are equivalent to those of liver. To this end, the absorption and relaxation times of the gel samples were compared to reference values, measured in an ex vivo porcine liver at different temperatures through the same methods used for the gel. For validation of the constructed phantom, the absorption and relaxation times were measured in samples containing the determined amounts of the hemoglobin and contrast agents and compared with the corresponding liver values. To qualitatively test the heat resistance of the phantom, it was heated with the LITT method up to approximately 120 degrees C and then was cut to find out if it has been melted.In contrast to liver, where the absorption change with temperature showed a sigmoidal form with a jump at T approximately equal 45 degrees C, the absorption of the gel varied slightly over the whole temperature range. However, the gel absorption presented a linear increase from approximately 1.8 to approximately 2.2 mm(-1) with the rising hemoglobin concentration. The gel relaxation times showed a linear decrease with the rising concentrations of the respective contrast agents. Conversely, with the rising temperature, both T1 and T2 increased linearly and showed almost the same trends as in liver. The concentrations of hemoglobin and T1 and T2 contrast agents were determined as 3.92 +/- 0.42 vol. %, 0.098 +/- 0.023 vol. %, and 2.980 +/- 0.067 vol. %, respectively. The measured ex vivo liver T1 value increased from approximately 300 to approximately 530 ms and T2 value from approximately 45 to approximately 52 ms over the temperature range. The phantom validation experiments resulted in absorption coefficients of 2.0-2.1 mm(-1) with variations of 1.5%-2.95% compared to liver below 50 degrees C, T1 of 246.6-597.2 ms and T2 of 40.8-67.1 ms over the temperature range of 25-75 degrees C. Using the Bland-Altman analysis, a difference mean of -6.1/1.9 ms was obtained for T1/T2 between the relaxation times of the phantom and liver. After heating the phantom with LITT, no evidence of melting was observed.The constructed phantom is heat-resistant and MR-compatible and can be used as an alternative to liver tissue in the MR-guided thermal ablation experiments with laser to develop clinical tools for real-time monitoring and controlling the thermal ablation progress in liver.