A leading expert in the fields of focused ultrasound and acoustics, Lawrence A. Crum, PhD, has been selected for the Focused Ultrasound Foundation’s 2020 Visionary Award.
This award is given every two years at our Symposium to recognize an individual who has created a larger vision for what the future of focused ultrasound may hold and whose effort, passion, and persistence have been crucial to advancing the field. During this year’s virtual meeting format, Dr. Crum will give a presentation on the path focused ultrasound has undergone from the Fry brothers to today and his vision for the technology’s future.
Dr. Crum recently retired after a 25-year career in the field. Most recently he was Research Professor of Bioengineering and Electrical Engineering at the University of Washington (UW), Principal Physicist in UW’s Applied Physics Laboratory, and Founder/Past Director of the Center for Industrial and Medical Ultrasound.
“Larry is one of the few true pioneers in the field of focused ultrasound,” said Foundation Chairman Neal F. Kassell, MD. “From the beginning, he understood the technology’s immense potential to help countless patients and led the field in both research and commercialization. We can all benefit from his insight on the opportunities that lie ahead.”
A self-proclaimed “bubble expert,” Dr. Crum received his doctoral degree in Physics from Ohio University and became interested in cavitation during his postdoctoral work at Harvard University. This interest collided with the field of focused ultrasound in 1994 when he was asked to consult on a new treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia. That relationship led Dr. Crum to help establish the company that is now SonaCare Medical. Over the years, he co-founded three additional companies – Therus, Ekos, and Ultrasound Technologies – and the International Society for Therapeutic Ultrasound (ISTU).
He has held positions at Harvard University, the US Naval Academy, and the University of Mississippi, where he was F.A.P. Barnard Distinguished Professor of Physics and Director of the National Cancer Center for Physical Acoustics.
Dr. Crum has published more than 220 articles in professional journals (with a Google Scholar h-index of 84) and has been awarded 21 patents. He was recently awarded the Gold Medal of the Acoustical Society of America, its highest honor.
“The ultimate goal of most medical researchers is to participate in the development of a new technology that has a major impact on the health of our general society,” said Dr. Crum. “I am confident that focused ultrasound will be one of those technologies.”
Previous Visionary Award recipients have included Narendra Sanghvi, PhD (2018), Kullervo Hynynen, PhD (2016), and Motti Zisser (2014).
The 7th International Symposium on Focused Ultrasound will be held virtually November 8—13, 2020.