
“What is exciting about these findings,” said Dr. Price, “Is that we discovered that focused ultrasound—based nanoparticle delivery is much better than we thought it could be for brain tumors and potentially other neurological applications. This is not a therapeutic study, but it reveals the transport mechanisms associated with gene delivery.”

“This study is part of a progression that began with the Focused Ultrasound Foundation,” said Dr. Price. “The Foundation funded the initial study in this series, which allowed us to determine that focused ultrasound could assist in safely delivering drug-bearing nanoparticles across the BBB to brain tumors.”
Those results enabled Dr. Price and his team to earn follow-on funding in the form of a three-year Hartwell Foundation grant followed by full NIH funding.
“The work that Rich and his team have done is paving the way for many clinical advances in using focused ultrasound to reach targets in the brain,” said Foundation Chairman Neal F. Kassell, MD. “We are proud to have supported the early stages of this research, and we congratulate the team on building upon their results in innovative ways to better understand focused ultrasound’s potential.”
In October 2017, the Foundation presented Dr. Price with the inaugural Andrew J. Lockhart Memorial Prize. The award is given annually to an investigator who has already made outstanding contributions to the advancement of cancer treatment using focused ultrasound and who demonstrates great potential for further achievements in the field.
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