1) Where Can FUS be applied. 2) What are the current and future applications of FUS in the general body area. 3) What are the technological problems of FUS in this field. 4)How may these problems be overcome. 5) What requirements does a prostate FUS system require for safe and effective application. 6) What are the potential complications of prostate MR guided FUS. 7) What are the technological requirements necessary to improve MR guided focused ultrasound therapy to the liver. 8) What other areas can MR guided focused ultrasound potentially be applied to in the body.
The largest area of FUS application has been of uterine fibroids but this application has shown the potential for similar procedures to be carried out in other areas of the body.. Because of the outpatient non-invasive nature of the procedure FUS becomesa highly cost-effective method of achieving destruction of abnomal tissue without invasion. Percutaneous destruction of liver tumours in a completely non-invasive manner would change therapy to the liver radically. FUS holds out such a prospect but the technological improvements required to our current machinery are substantial. The barrier of the FUS absorbing rib cage is hard to overcome and to date MR guided focused ultrasound has only been able to reach lesions that are not covered by ribs. The movement produced by respiration presents a significant problem currently addressed by controlled ventilation during FUS . Technological improvements are slowly being implemented to address these areas. Similar constraints apply to other upper abdominal organs which move with respiration and technological improvements to allow liver FUS equally apply to kidneys and spleen. New endorectal MR guided transducers which can ablate areas of the prostate under accurate MR targeting and thermal control are in phase 1 studies treating low risk prostate carcinoma and looking at safety and early efficacy. These results will be discussed. A brief discussion of MR guided focused ultrasound application to the breast and soft tissue tumours will also be presented as well as the possibility of FUS utilisation in soft tissues.
Gedroyc, W,
Body Applications of MR-Guided High Intensity Focused Ultrasound. Radiological Society of North America 2014 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, - ,Chicago IL.
http://archive.rsna.org/2014/13012024.html
