The paradigm for treating cancer and other debilitating diseases is shifting toward more targeted, personalized approaches that could improve therapeutic outcomes and minimize the harsh side effects of chemotherapy.
“Today, most cancer patients receive a combination of surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy,” observes Joy M. Polefone, Ph.D. “However, the day is fast approaching when a single treatment option will enable clinicians to perform the functions of surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy with minimal invasiveness, few side effects and increased efficacy. We believe that focused ultrasound-mediated targeted drug delivery (FUS-TDD) could be that option.”
Polefone is director of the Foundation’s newest initiative – the FUS-TDD Program – which is aimed at accelerating clinical applications of this innovative approach by fostering collaboration among the best and the brightest in the field.
FUS-TDD treatments will use advanced imaging techniques to activate a patient’s immunological response, perform tumor ablation and precisely deliver drugs. Instead of dispersing therapeutic agents throughout a patient’s body, FUS-TDD treatments will deliver them to a specific diseased tissue or organ. For example, targeted chemotherapy treatments will only deposit drugs on specific cancerous tissue, eliminating the systemic side effects associated with current approaches.
The Foundation’s FUS-TDD program has three long-term goals: 1) identify the clinical applications that will benefit most from MR guidance; 2) develop a research roadmap for clinical applications for MR-guided FUS-TDD; and, 3) spur research by fostering collaboration among academic researchers, pharmaceutical manufacturers, focused ultrasound companies and the clinical community.
To determine how the Foundation can add value in FUS-TDD development, the program’s team has become familiar with the research and projects that currently exist. They have held exploratory discussions with key researchers and representatives from industry, academia, governmental organizations, regulatory experts, and other relevant groups.
The next steps envisioned for the FUS-TDD initiative are:
- Form Core Stakeholders Group to help outline key research questions/gating factors to clinical applications and two to four high potential clinical applications.
- Conduct workshop for a broader group of stakeholders to refine the list of high potential clinical applications and to review the technical feasibility of addressing key research questions. The program will clarify research questions and will develop and refine research road maps for the top two to four clinical applications. Following the workshop, a white paper will be produced to chronicle the process for developing research questions and outcomes.
- Refine and implement research road maps for high potential clinical indications. Road maps will define pathways to clinical applications of FUS-TDD. They will be developed at the FUS-TDD Workshop and later refined by the Core Stakeholder Group. Members of this group will lead implementation activities within their areas of expertise.
During its initial phase, the FUS-TDD program will sponsor working groups that include academic researchers, clinicians and representatives from pharmaceutical companies, focused ultrasound manufacturers, governmental agencies and disease-specific foundations.
