Technology insight: High-intensity focused ultrasound for urologic cancers.
The growing interest in high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) technology is mainly due to its many potential applications as a minimally invasive therapy. It has been introduced to urologic oncology as a treatment for prostate and kidney cancers. While its application in the kidney is still at the clinical feasibility phase, HIFU technology is currently used in daily practice in Europe for the treatment of prostate cancer. Literature describing the results of HIFU for prostate cancer is mainly based on several series of patients from clinical development teams. The latest published results suggest that HIFU treatment is a valuable option for well-differentiated and moderately-differentiated tumors, as well as for local recurrence after external-beam radiation therapy.
Department of Urology, University-Associated City Hospital Munich-Harlaching, Germany. chau1@aol.com
Christian
C
Chaussy
Stefan
S
Thüroff
Xavier
X
Rebillard
Albert
A
Gelet
D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D036761:Ultrasound, High-Intensity Focused, Transrectal; D014571:Urologic Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*