State of the Technology

Focused ultrasound has the potential to transform the treatment of a variety of serious medical conditions.

All indicators point toward the evolution of this platform technology into a robust medical field, with the pace of research and development, publications, patient treatments and the number of device manufacturers all increasing rapidly in the past few years.

The Foundation produces its own State of the Field Report each year to chart the technology’s progress around the world.

Research, Development, and Commercialization

Some applications of the technology are approved for commercial use and are available in medical treatment centers around the world.  Other uses are still undergoing research, with opportunities for patients to participate in clinical trials at leading medical research institutions.  Even more potential uses of the technology are in the early stages of technical research.

The following charts summarize the state of research and regulatory approval of focused ultrasound for more than 170 medical conditions around the globe.

Status by disease category

Patients Treated

There have been more than 467,000 patients treated with focused ultrasound, and the majority of these treatments have been for prostate diseases, liver tumors, and uterine fibroids. Though brain treatments make up only a small portion of the total, the range of brain conditions treated is indicative of where the field is headed.