FUS Foundation is a Healthcare Partner in project

The UK’s leading research funding agency, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, has awarded a £1.25 – about $1.9 million – grant to researchers at Imperial College and King’s College in London to develop a localized cancer treatment using three key technologies: heat-sensitive nanoparticles, magnetic resonance imaging and MR-guided focused ultrasound.

The goal of the three-year project is to improve the quality and efficacy of cancer therapy.  Researchers anticipate that the new approach will reduce systemic toxicity and related side-effects, deliver more of the drug dose to tumor sites and enable clinicians to tailor treatments to individual patients. As co-investigator Professor Wladyslaw M. Gedroyc noted, “Our approach, once realized, could transform cancer chemotherapy into a simple outpatient treatment with absolutely minimal side-effect problems.”

A year after their procedures at the Mayo Clinic, 97 percent of the women who had MR-guided FUS treatments for uterine fibroids said their symptoms had improved. Ninety percent considered their improvement either “considerable” or “excellent.”

So reported Gina Hesley, M.D., an interventional radiologist at Mayo, who is studying the long-term effectiveness of MR-guided FUS treatments for uterine fibroids. She presented her findings at the Society of Interventional Radiology’s 35th Annual Scientific Meeting in Tampa.

The Mayo study is following 119 patients, 89 of whom provided feedback during telephone interviews a year after their procedures. Each will be interviewed again on the second and third anniversaries of their procedures.   While the results are promising, Hesley cautioned, longer-term effectiveness of the focused ultrasound treatment needs continued study. In an interview for this newsletter, Hesley detailed her research and its potential implications.

Advocate will also speak at April 27 Fibroid Relief at Last event in LA

Erin S., a blogger and patient advocate for the Foundation’s Patient Support Organization, Fibroid Relief, has taped an appearance on the daytime TV talk show, “The Doctors.” In a segment that will air on April 9, Erin shares her story about living with uterine fibroids and being successfully treated with MR-guided FUS. The segment will be archived online on www.thedoctorstv.com.

On April 27, Erin will be a panelist at Fibroid Relief at Last, a free, public information event sponsored by Fibroid Relief in Los Angeles. Other panelists will include UCLA clinicians and a naturopathic physician.

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Planning is progressing for the Foundation’s 2nd International MR-guided Focused Ultrasound Symposium, scheduled for October 17-20 in Washington, D.C. Key developments this month include the availability of sponsorship packages and the selection of May 15 as the opening date for abstract submissions.

The Symposium is a premier event for scientists, clinicians and industry representatives interested in current and future applications of MR-guided FUS. Hundreds of thought-leaders and participants from five continents are expected to engage in the symposium’s vibrant exploration of this exciting medical forefront.  

For device manufacturers and suppliers, the symposium promises to be a key promotional venue.  A menu of sponsorship opportunities is available for corporations and other organizations that want to demonstrate support and establish a presence at the symposium. For complete information, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. at Foundation headquarters. 

Call for abstracts to open on May 15 – details in May newsletter

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In a major change in strategy, the Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation has begun to concentrate its resources on two high-potential areas for MR-guided focused ultrasound – brain treatments and targeted drug delivery (TDD).

Leading focused ultrasound researcher Nathan McDannold, PhD, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, lectured and met with researchers and clinicians at the FUS Center of Excellence at the University of Virginia on March 24.

McDannold’s lecture, part of a speaker’s series funded by the FUS Foundation, was on “MRI-guided focused ultrasound for noninvasive ablation and targeted drug delivery.” He provided an overview of key research, technology and the major issues involved in developing MR-guided FUS applications for the brain and various cancers.

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