June 24, 2021 - First Glioblastoma Patient Treated at UVA – and more news…

June 24, 2021 IN THIS ISSUE Top News | Foundation News | Patient News | Research News Industry News | Webinars | Events     First Glioblastoma Patient Treated in Focused Ultrasound Clinical Trial at University of Virginia This multicenter clinical trial is evaluating the safety of using focused ultrasound to temporarily and reversibly open the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in glioblastoma patients undergoing standard chemotherapy treatment. Researchers hope that disrupting the BBB will enhance the delivery of chemotherapy to the tumor site. The study at the University of Virginia is being led by Jason Sheehan, MD, PhD, Professor of Neurological Surgery and Neuroscience and the Foundation’s Senior Advisor for Brain Tumor Research. The Foundation is contributing to this clinical trial through an ongoing partnership with the UVA Focused Ultrasound Center of Excellence. READ MORE >  Foundation News Register Now: Webinar on Focused Ultrasound for Varicose Veins The Foundation and Theraclion are hosting a webinar on  focused ultrasound for the treatment of varicose veins. Panelists will discuss the European experience and provide an overview of the US market perspective for this procedure. Join us Wednesday, June 30, at 11:30 am Eastern. REGISTER NOW >  Cancer Immunotherapy Month: Foundation and Partners Drive Progress and Awareness This month marks the 9th annual Cancer Immunotherapy Month – as designated by the Cancer Research Institute. The Foundation coordinated with two leaders in the field to raise awareness of immunotherapy and focused ultrasound’s potential role. Listen to a virtual fireside chat and join the conversation on social media. READ MORE >  Foundation Chairman Featured in Podcast Neal F. Kassell, MD, shared the state of the field of focused ultrasound for a wide range of conditions in a podcast for Health Professional Radio. Listen now on SoundCloud or YouTube. LISTEN NOW >  Patient News Watch Now: Focal Therapy for Prostate Cancer Dr. Chong Kian Tai addressed focal therapy and focused ultrasound treatment of prostate cancer with the Singapore Cancer Society's prostate cancer support group. Dr. Chong is a urologist at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital and Farrer Park Hospital.   Farrer Park Hospital is the only site in Singapore to offer the procedure as a standard-of-care treatment.  WATCH NOW >  Research News Focused Ultrasound Thalamotomy Improves Focal Hand Dystonia in Musicians, Others Focal hand dystonia (FHD) causes excessive and involuntary muscle contractions in the fingers, hand, and forearm. A team of researchers in Japan investigated whether focused ultrasound thalamotomy could be used to treat FHD. The group concluded that focused ultrasound thalamotomy significantly improved FHD. READ MORE >  Focused Ultrasound Enhances Effect of Aducanumab and Improves Memory in Preclinical Studies Professor Jürgen Götz’s group has published two preclinical studies using focused ultrasound to treat Alzheimer’s disease and the advanced effects of aging. The Alzheimer's research included aducanumab, the first drug approved for the disease in the US in 20 years.  The aging study found low-intensity ultrasound could restore memory and cognition. READ MORE > A New Focused Ultrasound Tool to Activate Deep Brain Neurons Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis sought to selectively and noninvasively target specific neurons to better understand brain function and treat brain disorders. Applying focused ultrasound to engineered sonothermogenetic cells induced a safe thermal effect that produced expected behavioral responses.   READ MORE > Meeting Report: ISTU 2021 The International Society for Therapeutic Ultrasound (ISTU) annual meeting was held from June 6–9, 2021. The event was hybrid virtual and in-person, with the live portion taking place in Gyeongju, Korea. We thank Dong-guk Paeng, PhD, for this meeting summary. READ MORE >  Meeting Report: 180th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America The latest ASA meeting was held virtually June 8-10 with the theme “Acoustics in Focus.” There were seven presentations relevant to focused ultrasound research. We thank LabTAU’s Maxime Lafond, PhD, for his comments on the sessions. READ MORE >  Visit our free, online research library of focused ultrasound publications.   More Research News Ultrasound Neuromodulation: Integrating Medicine and Engineering for Neurological Disease Treatment | EurekAlert! Ultrasound Technology Developed at U-M Now in Clinical Trials for Liver Cancer | University of Michigan Health Industry News Harmonic Medical Rebrands as Arrayus Technologies   The Canadian medical device company is developing a multi-modality focused ultrasound platform for noninvasive cancer therapy. The rebrand is inspired by both the evolution of the company and its vision for the future. READ THE PRESS RELEASE >  EDAP Hires MedTech Industry Veteran as CEO of US Subsidiary  Ryan Rhodes has been selected as Chief Executive Officer of EDAP Technomed, the company’s US subsidiary. The highly experienced medical technology and commercialization leader will drive EDAP’s US expansion. READ THE PRESS RELEASE >  Webinars Focused Ultrasound for Varicose Veins The Foundation and Theraclion are hosting a webinar on focused ultrasound for the treatment of varicose veins. Panelists will discuss the European experience and provide an overview of the US market perspective for this procedure. Join us Wednesday, June 30, 2021, at 11:30 am Eastern. REGISTER NOW >  Recent Webinar Recordings Breaking Barriers with Sound: Current and Emerging Indications for MR-guided Focused Ultrasound | Nir Lipsman, MD, PhD | Hosted by the International Stereotactic Radiosurgery Society (ISRS) | This recording is available only to ISRS members. Do you have news for our newsletter? Tell us about it!   Upcoming Events Save the Date: Cavitation Monitoring and Dosimetry for Therapeutic Ultrasound Workshop The Foundation and the American Institute for Ultrasound in Medicine are hosting a workshop on Cavitation Monitoring and Dosimetry for Therapeutic Ultrasound. The series of six virtual events will be held September 24 and October 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29 from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm Eastern. Topics include detection equipment, localization and mapping, thresholds and dosing, cavitation agents, and clinical and regulatory experiences.  June 24, 2021 Focused Ultrasound and Cancer Immunotherapy Fireside Chat | WEBINAR ​​​​​ June 24, 2021 Focused Ultrasound in Gynecology | WEBINAR ​​​​​ July 25-29, 2021 American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Annual Meeting  | VIRTUAL MEETING ​​​​​ September 7-10, 2021 iTRUSST's 2nd Focused Ultrasound Neuromodulation (FUN) Symposium | VIRTUAL MEETING ​​​​​ September 25-28, 2021 Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiological Society of Europe (CIRSE) 2021| VIRTUAL MEETING ​​​​ October 15-16, 2021 2021 AANS/CNS Tumor Section Satellite Symposium, Austin, TX November 18-21, 2021 26th Annual Meeting and Education Day of the Society for Neuro-Oncology, Boston, MA