Teenage Patient Captivates Audience at Foundation Event

An event on May 11 hosted by the Foundation in Charlottesville allowed more than 150 supporters, community leaders, scientists, and others to hear about the latest research advances and meet one special patient. Jack Campanile, a courageous 16-year-old high school student from Toronto spoke eloquently about life with disabling pain caused by a benign bone tumor, the decision that he made with his parents to become the first pediatric patient in North America to volunteer for a Foundation-funded clinical trial, and how the treatment gave him his life back. Attendees also heard updates from the Foundation staff and a keynote on the latest advances from Stanford radiologist Pejman Ghanouni, MD, PhD.

Alzheimer's Disease Steering Committee to Design Initial Clinical Trial

A new Steering Committee to guide the Foundation’s efforts in developing the use of focused ultrasound (FUS) for treating Alzheimer’s disease (AD) kicked off on May 1st. The primary goal of the group is to devise a protocol for a FUS Phase I clinical safety and feasibility study. This research will be performed at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. Todd Mainprize, MD, will serve as the lead Principal Investigator. The group plans to complete the clinical protocol by the end of the 2015.

Join the Foundation's Alzheimer's Disease Working Group

A new Alzheimer’s disease (AD) Working Group is forming to encourage discussion, create collaboration, and accelerate translational research. With the goal of moving forward the field of FUS for treating AD, researchers who are active in this area or who have an expressed interest in this potentially game changing application should consider joining. Those doing technical, preclinical, and/or clinical research are welcome. Interested clinicians and researchers should contact Jessica Foley, PhD, the Foundation’s Chief Scientific Officer. Join us!

Alzheimer's Webinar

On April 28th, neurologist and Chair of the Foundation’s Alzheimer’s disease (AD) Steering Committee, Steven T. DeKosky presented a 90-minute webinar entitled “Alzheimer's Disease: Introduction to Disease Pathology and Treatment.” The now archived presentation included the history of AD, an overview of the disease pathology, diagnostic parameters, past and current treatment methods, and discussion of focused ultrasound’s potential to impact AD treatment. 

WATCH NOW >

Neurodegenerative Disease Webinar

On May 6th, neuroscientist Elisa Konofagou, PhD, visited the Foundation and presented a 90-minute webinar on her work using focused ultrasound to facilitate drug delivery across the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Dr. Konofagou and her large scientific team at Columbia University are addressing the urgent need for treatment options that will improve care in degenerative central nervous system diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, which affect millions of patients and remain severely undertreated--in part due to the challenge of crossing the BBB.

Ned Kelly Joins Board of Directors

The Foundation is pleased to welcome Edward J. “Ned” Kelly, III, to its Board of Directors. A seasoned executive in global banking, Mr. Kelly will advise the Foundation in strategic fundraising and facilitation of new engagement.

“Ned is a stellar addition to the Board,” said Foundation Chairman Neal F. Kassell, MD. “His financial expertise will allow us to expand the already high return on investment that we provide to our supporters. His international business connections fit well with the global scope of our mission. We are grateful for his time, energy, and commitment.”

2014 Symposium Summary Now Available

A comprehensive summary of all of the presentations given during the 4-day 2014 Symposium has now been published on our website. It includes comments from the keynote speakers and each of the abstracts presented. 

IGNITE Pursues Non-Invasive Pediatric Solutions

On May 8th, the Image-Guided Non-Invasive Therapeutic Energy (IGNITE) Consortium met in Cincinnati to discuss using non-invasive therapies like focused ultrasound for treating pediatric diseases. Chief Medical Officer Suzanne LeBlang, MD, attended on behalf of the Foundation. The group’s first project is to create a treatment guidelines paper and international patient registry for osteoid osteoma. 

Review Article Recommends FUS as Option for Fibroids

A Clinical Practice Review published in the April 23rd issue of the New England Journal of Medicine by Mayo Clinic Ob/Gyn Elizabeth Stewart, MD, recommends focused ultrasound as an important uterine-conserving treatment that should be an option for women with symptomatic uterine fibroids. We announced its publication on April 30, and it was also featured on the Harvard Health Blog.

MDIC and FDA: Bring Patient Preferences into the Regulatory Process

On May 13th, the Medical Device Innovation Consortium (MDIC) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released important reports on incorporating patient preferences into the regulatory process. In its Report, the MDIC encourages device companies, the FDA, and stakeholders to explore patients’ perspectives on the benefits and risks of new technologies and incorporate those data into the regulatory process. Similarly, the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) and Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) released a draft guidance document on patient preference and the regulatory process. 

3rd European FUS Symposium

Mark your calendars, plan to participate, and submit your work! The 3rd European Symposium on Focused Ultrasound Therapy hosted by the European Focused Ultrasound Charitable Society will take place in London October 15-16, 2015.

Abstract Submission is Now Open! Abstracts must be submitted online by July 17. Please visit the conference website for further information, sponsorship opportunities, and the preliminary scientific program.

Research Roundup

Special Journal Issue Features Thermal Ultrasound
In March, the International Journal of Hyperthermia published a themed issue on thermal ultrasound therapy, exploring how heat and bubbles can be harnessed for therapeutic benefit. Guest edited by Gail ter Haar, Vol. 31, No. 2 provides readers with an insight into ultrasound’s versatility as an energy source. With articles on ultrasound’s therapeutic capacity, this issue is free to access online until the end of the year. READ MORE >

FDA on Ultrasound Field Characterization Methods
FDA scientists compared experimental and computational methods of characterizing the thermal and acoustic parameters of therapeutic ultrasound fields in water and tissue-mimicking material. READ MORE >

JTU Article of the Month - FUS for Breast Fibroadenomas

A comparative treatment study is now open at King’s College in London, evaluating Theraclion’s Echopulse system in the treatment of 50 women with breast fibroadenomas compared to women who underwent alternative treatments. The full-text, open-access article is available on the JTU website.

INSIGHTEC Launches Neurosurgery System on 1.5T MRI Platform

INSIGHTEC has expanded its ExAblate Neuro neurosurgery system for use in 1.5T MRI machines. Because the 1.5T platform is the most common system, this should allow significant market expansion. It is immediately available in Europe and pending regulatory approval in other areas.

READ MORE >

Profound Medical to be Publicly Traded in Canada

According to MassDevice.com, a reverse merger will raise $24 million to support clinical testing for prostate cancer in Profound’s 110-patient pivotal trial of the Tulsa-Pro MRI-guided focused ultrasound ablation device. Shares will trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange after the reverse merger with Mira IV Acquisition Corp.

Call for Abstracts

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