Ultrasound is ushering a new era of surgery-free cancer treatment
20 hours ago
- #ultrasound
- #cancer-treatment
- #non-invasive
- Ultrasound is being used in new ways to treat cancer without surgery, including a method called histotripsy discovered by Zhen Xu.
- Histotripsy uses high-frequency sound waves to mechanically break up tumor tissue, approved by the FDA for liver tumors in 2023.
- The treatment is fast, non-toxic, and non-invasive, often allowing patients to go home the same day.
- High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) is another method that uses heat to 'cook' tumors, effective for prostate cancer.
- Ultrasound can enhance other treatments by opening the blood-brain barrier for drug delivery or boosting the effects of radiation and immunotherapy.
- Research is ongoing to determine if ultrasound can treat metastatic cancer by making tumors more visible to the immune system.
- Ultrasound treatments aim to reduce the need for invasive surgeries and harsh therapies like chemotherapy and radiation.