Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation
Encyclopedia
The Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation (FUSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Charlottesville, Virginia
, United States
, that promotes the use of magnetic resonance
guided focused ultrasound
(MRgFUS), which uses high intensity focused ultrasound
(HIFU). The foundation receives limited support from medical industries such as Elbit Medical Imaging and GE Healthcare
, but is primarily funded through philanthropic and individual donations .
FUSF funds research awards for preclinical projects and pilot clinical trials involving new uses of MRgFUS. It also funds fellowships that combine research and hands-on clinical training to surgeons, radiologists, radiation oncologists and other specialists in the discipline of focused ultrasound surgery.
FUSF is in the process of creating a network of Centers of Excellence that will facilitate boundary-less collaboration between investigators and facilities. The first FUSF sponsored Center of Excellence was dedicated at the University of Virginia Health System in September 2009. .
Energy deposition leads to a significant temperature rise which causes necrotic changes to the target tissue and coagulation of the blood within the tissue. This process is termed thermal ablation and is the primary goal of Focused Ultrasound Surgery for solid tumors, resulting in cell death in the target tissue. After the procedure, the body’s immune system removes the ablated tissue naturally over time. This is in contrast to traditional surgical resection, where the target tissue is cut away and removed. Focused Ultrasound Surgery has a distinct advantage over standard radiation therapy and radiosurgery in that it avoids the toxicity of ionizing radiation (including the induction of secondary tumors).
Ultrasound travels readily through water, and the soft tissue in the body is mainly fluid (about 80% - this varies from organ to organ). The focused ultrasound source can be distant from the target site, thus enabling a non-invasive treatment approach. In some cases, the focused ultrasound source is housed in a probe which is inserted via an orifice to gain access to a specific location. For example, the prostate may be accessed via a transrectal or transurethral probe because of its close proximity to the pelvis and bowel.
A second form of MR imaging is derived from measuring differences in temperature, a process termed MR thermometry. This allows for the measurement of energy deposition during a sonication in Focused Ultrasound Surgery. Using these two imaging modalities together results in the precise identification of the target site, and accurate monitoring of the thermal ablation process.
Focused Ultrasound Surgery also holds much promise in enabling the precise localization of drug delivery (including gene therapy) to target organs. In addition, it may provide an excellent means of functional lesioning within the brain in the treatment of chronic pain, Parkinson’s Disease, tremor, depression, and other neuropsychiatric conditions.
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, that promotes the use of magnetic resonance
Magnetic resonance
Magnetic resonance can mean:*Nuclear magnetic resonance*Electron spin resonance*Magnetic resonance imaging *Functional magnetic resonance imaging *Muon spin spectroscopy...
guided focused ultrasound
Ultrasound
Ultrasound is cyclic sound pressure with a frequency greater than the upper limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is thus not separated from "normal" sound based on differences in physical properties, only the fact that humans cannot hear it. Although this limit varies from person to person, it is...
(MRgFUS), which uses high intensity focused ultrasound
High intensity focused ultrasound
High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound is a highly precise medical procedure using high-intensity focused ultrasound to heat and destroy pathogenic tissue rapidly through ablation...
(HIFU). The foundation receives limited support from medical industries such as Elbit Medical Imaging and GE Healthcare
GE Healthcare
GE Healthcare is a division of GE Technology Infrastructure, which is itself a division of General Electric . It employs more than 46,000 people worldwide and is headquartered in Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom. GE Healthcare is the first GE business segment to be headquartered...
, but is primarily funded through philanthropic and individual donations .
Foundation Activities
The Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation promotes the development of patient treatments using MRgFUS (MRI-guided Focused Ultrasound Surgery) and is supported by philanthropic and corporate donations. The Foundation funds research and fellowships, sponsors focused ultrasound centers of excellence and hosts a global online collaborative research network (CRN) of scientists and clinicians interested in MRgFUS. It also organizes educational events – the largest and most impactful of which will be the 2nd International Symposium on MR-guided Focused Ultrasound from October 17-20, 2010 in Washington, D.C., USA. (http://www.fusfoundation.org/Symposium-2010/mrgfus-2010)FUSF funds research awards for preclinical projects and pilot clinical trials involving new uses of MRgFUS. It also funds fellowships that combine research and hands-on clinical training to surgeons, radiologists, radiation oncologists and other specialists in the discipline of focused ultrasound surgery.
FUSF is in the process of creating a network of Centers of Excellence that will facilitate boundary-less collaboration between investigators and facilities. The first FUSF sponsored Center of Excellence was dedicated at the University of Virginia Health System in September 2009. .
About MR guided Focused Ultrasound
Focused Ultrasound Surgery applies computational science and imaging technology for the non-invasive treatment of benign and malignant tumors.Thermal Ablation
Focused Ultrasound Surgery takes advantage of the phenomenon of energy transformation that takes place when high intensity ultrasound is focused on a single point within the body. Each pulse of focused ultrasound energy is termed a sonication. The focal point experiences significant energy deposition leading to a rise in temperature which can be controlled with great precision through sophisticated computational modeling. Ultrasound used for imaging, by comparison, is low intensity and is not focused.Energy deposition leads to a significant temperature rise which causes necrotic changes to the target tissue and coagulation of the blood within the tissue. This process is termed thermal ablation and is the primary goal of Focused Ultrasound Surgery for solid tumors, resulting in cell death in the target tissue. After the procedure, the body’s immune system removes the ablated tissue naturally over time. This is in contrast to traditional surgical resection, where the target tissue is cut away and removed. Focused Ultrasound Surgery has a distinct advantage over standard radiation therapy and radiosurgery in that it avoids the toxicity of ionizing radiation (including the induction of secondary tumors).
Ultrasound travels readily through water, and the soft tissue in the body is mainly fluid (about 80% - this varies from organ to organ). The focused ultrasound source can be distant from the target site, thus enabling a non-invasive treatment approach. In some cases, the focused ultrasound source is housed in a probe which is inserted via an orifice to gain access to a specific location. For example, the prostate may be accessed via a transrectal or transurethral probe because of its close proximity to the pelvis and bowel.
MRI Guidance and Control
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the essential partner to precise Focused Ultrasound Surgery. MRI is used to guide the deposition of energy to the target site (a tumor, for example) with great precision (+/- 1mm) and to monitor the temperature levels at that site. The MRI machine creates a strong magnetic field within which the patient is placed during the procedure. Radiofrequency stimulation within this magnetic field allows generation of detailed internal images of the patient through a complex computational process. Diagnostic MR images are derived by measuring the different resonance signals of the organs and tissue, and can produce detailed anatomical images of the patient’s body.A second form of MR imaging is derived from measuring differences in temperature, a process termed MR thermometry. This allows for the measurement of energy deposition during a sonication in Focused Ultrasound Surgery. Using these two imaging modalities together results in the precise identification of the target site, and accurate monitoring of the thermal ablation process.
Summary
In summary, Magnetic Resonance Guided Focused Ultrasound Surgery (MRgFUS) can thus be described as an elegant integration of diagnostic and therapeutic science made possible by advanced technology. MRgFUS provides the physician with a safe and non-invasive “virtual scalpel”, where energy deposition resulting in thermal ablation and cell death of target tissue replaces traditional surgical resection, and thus avoids traditional surgical trauma. Both MRI and ultrasound have benign safety profiles compared to traditional surgery, X-ray imaging, CT scans, and radiation therapy.Focused Ultrasound Surgery also holds much promise in enabling the precise localization of drug delivery (including gene therapy) to target organs. In addition, it may provide an excellent means of functional lesioning within the brain in the treatment of chronic pain, Parkinson’s Disease, tremor, depression, and other neuropsychiatric conditions.
International Symposium
(http://www.fusfoundation.org/Symposium-2010/mrgfus-2010) MRgFUS 2010 Symposium website with abstract submission, program, registration and accommodation details.Links
- http://www.fusfoundation.org Official website with details of funding application process
- http://www.fusfoundation.org/symposium MRgFUS 2008 Symposium website with program,registration, accommodation details.