Focused Ultrasound Clinical Trials Highlighted at RSNA’s 2021 Annual Meeting

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Key Points

  • The 107th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) was held November 28 through December 2, 2021, in Chicago.
  • In the “Best of Clinical Trials at RSNA 2021” session, one trial of Profound’s TULSA-PRO device and two trials using the Insightec Exablate body system were highlighted.

The 107th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) was held November 28 through December 2, 2021, in Chicago. With some content offered virtually this year amid the pandemic, the preliminary total for in-person registration was 21,300, down 55 percent from 2019 meeting.

In the Monday session (Session ID: M4-RCP48) titled “Best of Clinical Trials at RSNA 2021,” the selection committee chose the best three clinical trials at the conference: one used Profound’s TULSA-PRO device, and another used the Insightec Exablate body system. Following each presentation, an expert discussant provided an 8-minute perspective on the trial to highlight its strengths and limitations. The three selected studies were:

  • Pivotal Trial of Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Guided Transurethral Ultrasound Ablation in Men with Localized Prostate Cancer: Three-year Follow-up and Multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Imaging Prediction of Salvage Treatment (Presented by Dr. Steven Raman, University of California Los Angeles; Discussed by Dr. Pejman Ghanouni, Stanford University)
  • Magnetic Resonance-Guided Focused Ultrasound Versus External Beam Radiation Therapy for the Treatment of Pain in Bone Metastases: A Phase II Trial (Presented by Dr. Alessandro Napoli, Sapienza University of Rome; Discussed by Dr. Bruce Haffty, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey)
  • The Impact of 18F-DCFPyL PET/CT on the Management of Patients with Recurrent Prostate Cancer: Results of a Prospective, Multicenter Trial (Presented by Dr. Ur Metser, University of Toronto; Discussed by Dr. Steve Cho, University of Wisconsin)

“It was validating that RSNA had such interest in the three selected trials,” said Mathieu Burtnyk, Senior Vice President Product Leader (TULSA-PRO) at Profound Medical, “These topics are all applications for Profound Medical, and all have been supported by the mission of the Focused Ultrasound Foundation in some way.”

“It is critical for RSNA to recognize and embrace the importance of focused ultrasound as an image-guided procedure,” said Suzanne LeBlang, MD, the Foundation’s Director of Clinical Relationships. “The recognition of the impact of these clinical trials is an important step in that process.”

The Exablate bone metastases study was also featured on the cover of the November 30 RSNA Daily Bulletin, which is handed out at the conference.

We thank Mathieu Burtnyk, PhD, Senior Vice President Product Leader at Profound Medical, for his assistance with this meeting report.