February 9, 2023 - Partnership with The Michael J. Fox Foundation to Advance Liquid Biopsy Research and more news…

The two foundations are funding a clinical trial…                   February 9, 2023 IN THIS ISSUE Top News | Foundation News Research News | Industry News | Webinars | Events     Focused Ultrasound Foundation and The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research Partner on Liquid Biopsy Clinical Trial The two foundations are funding a clinical trial investigating focused ultrasound’s ability to enhance a brain tissue sampling technique – liquid biopsy – in patients with Parkinson’s disease. The 10-participant clinical trial will begin to explore how focused ultrasound can aid in diagnosis and disease monitoring for patients with Parkinson’s disease. Nora Vanegas, MD, at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, is leading the study. READ MORE > Foundation News UK Focused Ultrasound Foundation Announces Launch A new foundation in the UK will fund research and increase awareness to advance focused ultrasound. The launch event was held on January 30 to celebrate this important milestone. Focused ultrasound treatments for prostate cancer and essential tremor are approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and receive coverage from the National Health Service (NHS) England. READ THE PRESS RELEASE > Apply Now: Focused Ultrasound Foundation ACCESS FUS Internship The ACCESS FUS internship provides educational and research opportunities to undergraduate students from underrepresented and underserved backgrounds. The Foundation’s goal is to help create a focused ultrasound community that is more diverse and inclusive. The deadline to apply for the internship is April 15. LEARN MORE AND APPLY > Research News Meet the Expert: Professor Wladyslaw Gedroyc Prof. Wladyslaw “Wady” Gedroyc, MBBS, MRCP, FRCR, is a consultant radiologist at St. Mary’s Hospital, Imperial College National Health Service Trust. For more than 20 years, he has been an integral part of advancing focused ultrasound in the UK. Prof. Gedroyc has treated more than 800 patients using the technology. READ THE PROFILE >  Consensus Paper Reviews Use of Focused Ultrasound to Help Treat Diffuse Midline Gliomas A new consensus paper describes the use of focused ultrasound to help treat diffuse midline gliomas (DMGs). The paper provides a comprehensive overview of all related preclinical and clinical studies, most of which use the technology to open the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Four manufacturers are currently in clinical trials using their systems to open the BBB to treat DMGs and other brain tumors. READ MORE >  Postdoctoral Fellowship Opportunity to Conduct ALS Research The Milton Safenowitz Postdoctoral Fellowship Program funds amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research. The program supports budgets up to $75,000 per year, and letters of intent are due March 8. This early-career fellowship is offered by the ALS Association, the largest philanthropic funder of ALS research worldwide. LEARN MORE AND APPLY >  Pitch Your Ultrasound Product Ideas in the UltraCon Shark Tank The American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine’s (AIUM) UltraCon meeting is hosting a shark tank to promote new technologies and product development ideas in medical ultrasound. Pitches will be assessed by a panel of experts from industry, venture capital, and academia. The deadline to apply is February 21. READ MORE >  More Research News University of Toronto Researchers and Physicians Provide Chemotherapy to Pediatric Brain Tumours Using MRI-Guided Focused Ultrasound | India Education Diary Eli Vlaisavljevich Receives Virginia’s Highest Faculty Honor | Virginia Tech New Tool Uses Ultrasound ‘Tornado’ to Break Down Blood Clots | North Carolina State University STEM-Focused | Wright State University  Industry News Company Profile: Cordance Medical Cordance Medical is a startup company headquartered in Mountain View, California. The company’s NeuroAccess™ platform is being developed for targeting blood-brain barrier opening. We spoke with CEO Ryan Dittamore about Cordance’s origins and future studies. READ MORE > Theraclion Shares Results of First US Clinical Trial for Varicose Veins Theraclion’s 20-participant US clinical trial proved that Sonovein therapy is safe and feasible. Clinicians observed healing of the abnormal vein in 95% of cases, which is equivalent to traditional therapies. The company plans to begin a larger, multisite study in the US. READ THE PRESS RELEASE > Arrayus Technologies Receives Funding to Advance Focused Ultrasound through Artificial Intelligence Arrayus Technologies has been awarded up to $1.9 million to develop and integrate machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities into its therapy platform. The funding comes from INOVAIT and the Government of Canada through the INOVAIT Focus Fund. The company aims to treat uterine fibroids firstly, and pancreas, liver, and kidney cancers in the future. READ THE PRESS RELEASE > OxSonics Clinical Data Demonstrates Device Safety Initial clinical data suggests that OxSonics Therapeutics' ultrasound-based drug delivery platform SonoTran® is safe and well-tolerated in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. The data were presented at the recent 28th European Symposium on Ultrasound Contrast Imaging. SonoTran is in clinical development to enhance delivery and improve efficacy of oncology drugs, particularly those that struggle to penetrate tumors. READ THE PRESS RELEASE > Webinars From Dependent to Independent: Treatment Options for Essential Tremor & Parkinson’s Wednesday, February 15, at 5:00 pm Eastern Featuring Dr. Shervin Rahimpour from University of Utah Health Hosted by Insightec Insightec will host similar events on February 21 and March 19 LEARN MORE AND REGISTER > Immune Therapy and Therapeutic Ultrasound Thursday, February 23, at 11:00 am Eastern Dedicated to rising scientists in therapeutic ultrasound Featuring three speakers and a Q&A session Hosted by the International Society for Therapeutic Ultrasound LEARN MORE AND REGISTER > Recent Webinars & Podcasts Ultrasound Therapy of the Heart | Featuring Mathieu Pernot, PhD | Hosted by the International Society for Therapeutic Ultrasound (59 minutes) 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 21, 2023 2nd HIFUture Symposium 2023, Lyon, France​​​​​​ April 23-27, 2023 38th Annual Society for Thermal Medicine (STM) Meeting, San Diego, 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 | Abstracts are due February 24