HCG adds HIFU, a minimally invasive procedure, to treat prostrate cancer
August 24th, 2010 Posted in hifuHealthCare Global Enterprises Limited (HCG), South Asia’s largest cancer care network which has been pioneering non-invasive treatment protocols in cancer treatment, today added High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) - an acoustic ablation technique - to its offering portfolio for treatment of prostrate cancer. The oncology major thus joins a select group of hospitals that offers new age treatment for prostrate cancer and becomes the first hospital in Karnataka to install this technology.
HIFU technology utilizes the power of ultrasound to destroy deep-seated tissue with pinpoint accuracy for treatment of prostate cancer. HIFU focuses sound waves in a targeted area which rapidly increases the temperature to 90-95°C in the focal zone causing tissue destruction. HIFU treatment typically is a 2-3 hour procedure performed one time on a patient basically on an out-patient basis under spinal anesthesia. Patients generally are up and walking within hours after HIFU and can return to a normal lifestyle within a couple of days.
Unlike radiation, HIFU is non-ionizing which means that this acoustic ablation technique could also be used as a salvage technique if other prostate cancer treatments fail after radiation.