From the April 2016 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
With successful initiation of the first trial using focused ultrasound to non-invasively open the blood-brain barrier, and building on promising pre-clinical results in Alzheimer’s models, a pilot clinical trial for treatment of Alzheimer’s is being organized. Our hope is that this safety and feasibility trial will begin within the next year, and successful results could lead to follow-on trials investigating the efficacy of focused ultrasound with and without drugs to treat or slow the progression of Alzheimer’s.
Pre-clinical evidence is mounting, demonstrating that focused ultrasound can enhance the immune response to cancer and/or enhance the effects of promising cancer immunotherapies such as checkpoint inhibitors. In the near future, the first clinical trial testing focused ultrasound in combination with immunotherapy should begin. If successful, this could open the door to a promising new combination approach in the treatment of advanced cancer. Recent research advances and increasing awareness have pushed focused ultrasound to the tipping point, where it is primed to develop into a multipurpose therapeutic technology to improve outcomes for patients with a wide range of serious medical disorders.
About the author: Jessica L. Foley, Ph.D., is chief scientific officer of the Focused Ultrasound Foundation. Dr. Foley joined the Foundation in 2012 after completing a one-year AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship at the National Science Foundation. Prior to that, she was the Neuro Projects Manager and Clinical Marketing Manager at InSightec, one of the pioneering focused ultrasound medical device manufacturers.Back to HCB News
