January 2021
The publication at The Journal of Urology entitled “High Intensity Focused Ultrasound Hemigland Ablation for Prostate Cancer: Initial Outcomes of a United States Series” details the study of 100 men with biopsy-confirmed prostate cancer, 72% of which were classified with intermediate or high-risk disease. Between December 2015 and December 2019, all 100 men underwent hemi-gland ablation with HIFU as a primary treatment for prostate cancer. At two years, 91% of the participants had avoided radical treatment. Additionally, there were no major complications, and no rectal fistulas occurred. The study also found that urinary symptoms returned to near baseline questionnaire scores within 3 - 6 months and baseline sexual function was achieved by 12 months.
“The outcomes in our series are consistent with those published by other Sonablate HIFU users in Europe," said Dr. Samuel Peretsman, a urological oncologist in Charlotte, NC. “We have worked in a collaborative fashion for over 13 years to refine the nuances of the diagnostic pathway. This now includes multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) and precision guided biopsy to create a fully customizable treatment (HIFU),” said Peretsman. “Our team at Urology Specialists of the Carolinas have been at the forefront of providing patients the full complement of prostate cancer treatment options. HIFU has allowed us to preserve patient defined quality of life, including uncompromised urinary continence and excellent sexual function, with adequate cancer control” he added.
“It is fantastic to see consistently good results in different jurisdictions, amongst different patient groups and with different operators. It is a fact that with many new treatments we see considerable variability in outcome. This does not appear to be the case using the Sonablate platform for men with prostate cancer. These results show that men will stay continent, maintain their sexual function and obtain superior oncological outcomes in the many centers of excellence that now exist for this technology”, stated Professor of Interventional Oncology, Mark Emberton, who is Dean of Faculty at University College London and who has pioneered the use of Sonablate HIFU for focal therapy.
Read more in The Journal of Urology:
https://www.auajournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1097/JU.0000000000001126
