Introduction to HIFU

High Intensity Focused Ultrasound [HIFU] is used to treat cancer tumours without requiring surgery. Doctors have been interested in this type of treatment (use HIFU to kill cancer cells without damaging healthy cells)for nearly 50 years. Chinese researchers were the first to lead the way using this treatment. But it is only in the past 8 years that they have been seriously investigating its use in treating different types of cancer and has been used to successfully treat over 8,000 patients worldwide. One advantage of this type of treatment is that because it only uses sound waves to kill the cancer cells, it doesn’t have as many side effects as other types of cancer treatments already in use. HIFU has achieved the European safety approval CE Mark in 2005, it is now available for use widely in China and some private hospitals in Europe and UK.

HIFU is used to treat

Pancreatic cancer

Prostate cancer

Kidney cancer

Primary and secondary liver cancer

Bladder cancer

HIFU is not a suitable treatment for

Brain tumours
Lung cancer
Cancers in the pelvic area
Cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes
Skin cancers
Head and neck cancers

HIFU Treatments

Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic Cancer is not usually discovered until it is fairly advanced because of the lack of tell-tale symptoms of the disease. It may well have spread to the pancreas from elsewhere in the body. An advanced and therefore sizeable tumour in the pancreas can cause intense pain and is difficult to treat conventionally. HIFU can be used to treat the tumour and therefore bring relief from the associated pain.Doctors in China have used HIFU to help relieve pain and other symptoms in people with advanced pancreatic cancer. Surgery is still the first choice of treatment for people with pancreatic cancer that has not spread to other parts of the body. If you are not fit enough to have surgery to cure your cancer, then HIFU treatment plus the Next G-PDT treatment is a good choice.

Kidney Cancer

Without HIFU, kidney cancer generally requires surgery, and any remaining cancer is treated using radiotherapy and/or anti-cancer drugs. Survival rates vary dependent on the type of cancer and how soon it is treated. Treating kidney cancers with HIFU can cause less trauma and in some cases, may help to avoid dialysis. [more ...]

Liver Cancer

A tumour in the liver, which would often be removed by surgery, may now be suitable for HIFU treatment. In some cases it was not possible to cure secondary cancers in the liver without HIFU, and anti-cancer drugs are often prescribed to slow down progress of the disease. In such cases treatment with HIFU may significantly improve the patient's outlook and help to control further spread of the disease. [more ...]

Bone Cancer

HIFU is a safe, effective method of treating suitable bone tumours. It has the great advantage that it can avoid amputation of affected limbs. Many primary bone tumours [osteosarcomas] have been treated in China and a few select cases have been treated in Oxford. We are hoping to expand this work in conjunction with our Orthopaedic colleagues.

Other Cancers

In the China work has shown that there are many other potential soft tissue areas where HIFU may be beneficial. While longer term studies are awaited, the data is very encouraging and the role of HIFU in cancer treatment is likely to expand in the next few years.

Cancers can be malignant and capable of spreading through the body and potentially life-threatening; or benign, but potentially uncomfortable if they grow. They can be diffuse (spread through an organ or the body) or "lumpy". With HIFU we treat both malignant and benign lumpy cancers. HIFU equipment provides:

Low power imaging ultrasound - which enables us to locate and look at the cancer; and
High intensity focused ultrasound - which can accurately focus on the tumour and kill it.

The healthy tissue through which the ultrasound passes is not affected. The benefits of HIFU treatment:

HIFU is clean energy, which works by heating the cancer cells.
HIFU treatment causes far less damaging side-effects than conventional treatments.
HIFU can avoid chemotherapy.
HIFU does not involve radiotherapy.
HIFU does not involve surgery; it is non-invasive.
HIFU doesn`t require a lengthy hospital stay.
HIFU treatment may result in a strengthening of the patient' s immunity to cancer.

People who have been treated with HIFU so far have had very few side effects. It may cause some pain for 3 to 4 days afterwards. And it may cause sore skin in the area treated, but this is unusual.