Contact Laser Treatment for Bladder Cancer

Abstract

The word laser, an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation, was coined by Maiman,¹ who succeeded in the amplification of electromagnetic waves in the region of visible light, using a ruby crystal. As laser equipment must fulfill many requirements for use in the medical field, the following laser systems have become available only today: (1) the ruby laser, (2) the argon laser, (3) the Nd:YAG laser, and (4) the CO₂ laser. Among these lasers, the Nd:YAG laser developed in 1962 by Johnson and colleagues² and described in 1966 by Snitzer³ has been increasingly accepted because of its possibility to transmit the Nd:YAG laser beam by means of a flexible quartz fiber, as well as a highly efficient coagulation and penetration capability.⁴ However, such distinct disadvantages as damage to the tip of the laser light guide, instability, and uncertainty, have been pointed out for endoscopic surgery due to the noncontact method for delivering laser energy.^5,6 We devised and prepared a new probe called an endorod, which can transmit laser light interstitially. ⁷ This chapter discusses the features of contact laser irradiation using the endorod for the treatment of bladder cancer, namely, transurethral laser destruction of bladder cancer (TULD).