HIFU in the management of prostate cancer
March 23rd, 2010 Posted in hifuHIFU is commonly used in conjunction with transurethral resection of the prostate in order to reduce prostate gland size and facilitate effective tissue destruction. To destroy the tissue, HIFU works in two ways, known as thermal and mechanical effects.
According to a recent study at Klinikum Munich-Harlaching, Munchen, Germany, an additional benefit of HIFU is that it can be used as salvage therapy after radical prostatectomy and external-beam radiotherapy.
A new area of research with HIFU involves focal therapy, where tumor sites within the gland are directly targeted with the objective of reducing morbidity.
The most recent data on the Ablatherm HIFU device come from an international registry and indicate a 5-year biochemical survival rate of 85%.