February 23, 2023 - New England Journal of Medicine Publishes Parkinson's Disease Trial Results and more news…

The pivotal trial results…                   February 23, 2023 IN THIS ISSUE Top News | Foundation News | Patient News Research News | Industry News | Webinars | Events     Pivotal Trial Results of Focused Ultrasound for Parkinson’s Disease Published in the New England Journal of Medicine Results from a multicenter, international clinical trial of focused ultrasound to address the major motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) were published this week. Three months after treatment, 69% of participants responded to the therapy, compared with 32% of patients in the sham cohort. After one year, the majority of participants who showed a response at the 3-month follow-up experienced sustained results. These data contributed to the US FDA expanding approval of focused ultrasound to include the treatment of patients with advanced PD suffering with mobility, rigidity, or dyskinesia. READ MORE >     HistoSonics to Begin Clinical Trial for Kidney Tumors HistoSonics has received FDA approval to begin a #HOPE4KIDNEY clinical trial in the US to treat primary renal tumors. The company's Edison platform uses histotripsy to noninvasively and mechanically destroy tissue. This new trial comes on the heels of the #HOPE4LIVER studies, which have completed enrollment. READ MORE > Foundation News Apply Now: Darden Focused Ultrasound Fellowship In 2020, the University of Virginia Darden School of Business and the Foundation established the Darden Focused Ultrasound Fellowship. Applications are now being accepted for one- to three-year fellowships. The opportunity offers students admitted to Darden's Future Year Scholars Program a career start and valuable experience. READ MORE & APPLY > My Experience as a Darden Focused Ultrasound Fellow Camille Favero joined the Foundation in 2020 as the inaugural Darden Focused Ultrasound Fellow. During her two years at the Foundation, Camille worked with the FUS Partners and communications teams. Learn more about her experience in this blog post. READ MORE > More Foundation News Launch of UK Focused Ultrasound Foundation Could See More Clinical Trials | Brain Tumour Research Patient News Parkinson’s Patient Films Documentary of Focused Ultrasound Treatment Last year, John Dutton underwent focused ultrasound to help alleviate the tremors associated with his Parkinson’s disease. He was treated in Boston by neurosurgeon Rees Cosgrove, MD, and his team. John produced a short documentary about the treatment that explores why he chose focused ultrasound, the day of the procedure, and his results. WATCH THE DOCUMENTARY >  More Patient News CNN Puts Focus on UVA’s ‘Scalpel Free’ Focused Ultrasound Treatment | UVA Today Surrey Prostate Cancer Patient Seeks Treatment in Ontario, Calls B.C. System ‘Flawed’ | Global News Canada [video] University of Virginia’s Scalpel Free Focused Ultrasound Treatment Brings Focus | India Education Diary Ultrasound is Ultra-Cool | The Health Care Blog Research News Neuroimaging and Fluid Biomarker Data from Sunnybrook’s Ongoing Alzheimer’s Study Published Researchers recently published new data from an ongoing Alzheimer’s disease clinical trial using focused ultrasound to disrupt the blood-brain barrier (BBB). The data show that BBB disruption is safe across multiple areas of the brain and at expanded volumes. Although MRgFUS reduced amyloid deposits in the brain, no improvement of the Alzheimer's decline was observed. READ MORE >  Focused Ultrasound for Motor Neuron Modulation of the Spinal Cord A Johns Hopkins University team conducted a preclinical study evaluating the ability of low-intensity ultrasound (LIUS) to modulate motor neurons in an exposed spinal cord. The LIUS significantly decreased electrical signals from the spine to the treated hindlimb, but not the untreated forelimb. Researchers hope these data may eventually be useful for treating spinal-generated dyskinesias, spinal segmental myoclonus, or stiff-man syndrome. READ MORE >  More Research News Delray Medical Center is First Hospital in Florida to Treat Alzheimer’s Patient with Non-invasive Focused Ultrasound Technology | South Florida Hospital News Industry News Company Profile: SONIRE Therapeutics In 2020, SONIRE Therapeutics was founded in Tokyo, Japan. The company has launched a clinical trial assessing their novel focused ultrasound device for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. We spoke with SONIRE’s CEO, Tohru Satoh, about this trial and what makes their device unique. READ MORE > SONIRE Therapeutics Begins Pancreatic Cancer Clinical Trial The first patient has been enrolled in SONIRE’s clinical trial for the treatment of unresectable pancreatic cancer. Researchers are using the company’s next-generation HIFU therapy system. Ninety participants in Japan will be randomly selected to receive either HIFU plus chemotherapy or chemotherapy only. READ THE PRESS RELEASE > ‘Why It Takes So Long’ Blog Series: Facilities In this seventh blog in the series, Mark Carol, MD, a senior consultant at the Foundation, addresses how hospitals influence the commercialization of a new medical device. Some of the factors discussed include decisions to invest in new technologies and proper cost reporting to secure adequate payment codes. READ THE BLOG POST > Cerevast Medical Poised to Go Public in SPAC Deal Cerevast Medical, a focused ultrasound company pursuing treatments for stroke and retinal vein occlusion, has merged with two startups to form Longevity Biomedical. Longevity’s common thread is helping aging people lead healthier, longer lives. This year, Longevity is expected to go public in a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger and could raise an additional $30 million through a pre-transaction private investment in public equity. In a SPAC transaction, a private company becomes publicly traded by merging with a listed shell company. READ THE PRESS RELEASE > More Industry News Cardiawave Granted 3 New Patents Extending Its Intellectual Property Protection for Its Technology in the United States | Businesswire Webinars From Dependent to Independent: Treatment Options for Essential Tremor & Parkinson’s Sunday, March 19, at 6:00 pm Eastern Featuring Drew Kern, MD, from the University of Colorado Hosted by Insightec LEARN MORE AND REGISTER > Do you have news for our newsletter? Tell us about it!   Upcoming Events March 1-5, 2023 European Congress of Radiology (ECR) 2023, Vienna, Austria ​​​​​​ March 4-9, 2023 Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) Annual Meeting, Phoenix, AZ ​​​​​​ March 19-24, 2023 Winter School on Therapeutic Ultrasound, Les Houches, France​​​​​​ March 25-29, 2023 American Institute for Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) Annual Convention 2023, Orlando, Florida | Rebranded as UltraCon ​​​​​ April 14-19, 2023 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2023, Orlando, Florida​​​​​​ April 16-19, 2023 European Conference on Interventional Oncology (ECIO) 2023, Stockholm, Sweden​​​​​​ April 17-20, 2023 22nd Annual International Symposium on Therapeutic Ultrasound (ISTU) and 6th European Symposium on FUS (EUFUS) Joint Conference, Lyon, France​​​​​​ April 19-22, 2023 Veterinary Cancer Society (VCS)/Veterinary Society of Surgical Oncology (VSSO) Collaborative Conference 2023, Cancun, Mexico​​​​​​ April 21, 2023 2nd HIFUture Symposium 2023, Lyon, France​​​​​​ April 21-24, 2023 American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) Annual Meeting 2023, Los Angeles, CA​​​​​​ April 23-27, 2023 38th Annual Society for Thermal Medicine (STM) Meeting, San Diego, CA​​​​​​ April 28 – May 1, 2023 American Urology Association (AUA) Annual Meeting 2023, Chicago, IL​​​​​​ May 16-20, 2023 American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, CA​​​​​​ June 22-24, 2023 Society for NeuroOncology’s 7th Biennial Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Research Conference, Washington, DC June 22-24, 2023 MIB Agents FACTOR Osteosarcoma Conference, Atlanta, GA