Focused Ultrasound Provides Hope in Combating the Deadliest Brain Tumor

Jason Sheehan, M.D., Ph.D., a neurosurgeon from UVA Health, has paved the way in focused ultrasound to treat glioblastoma, which is the most aggrieved and deadliest brain tumor currently known. 

The University of Virginia School of Medicine, led by Dr. Sheehan, is pioneering a technique that hits cancer cells with a drug, sensitizing them to sound waves, then exposes them with focused ultrasound. The research is early, but tests on cell samples in lab dishes look promising. 

Researchers' results suggest that the technique has "Substantial potential for treatment of malignant brain tumors and other challenging oncology indications…" Other areas in which the process could be performed are lung and breast cancer, melanoma, and other cancers that typically are handled with traditional radiation oncology treatment options. The team predicts that the procedure will be especially useful in treating cancers in sensitive areas of the body that pose a challenge to access.

"Sonodynamic therapy with focused ultrasound offers a new therapeutic approach to treating patients with malignant brain tumors," said Dr. Sheehan. "This approach combines two approved options, (the drug) 5-ALA and focused ultrasound, to produce a powerful tumoricidal effect on several different types of glioblastomas.'

Read more about this innovative treatment here.

Improvements in Medical Imaging Reduces X-Ray Radiation Exposure

Utilizing X-ray image technology has been a staple in today’s medicine; however, it does create a significant risk to patients and medical personnel. Standard machines that offer X-ray treatments such as CT scanners, fluoroscopes, and mammography devices produce a considerable amount of hazardous radiation and are not very effective. 

Usually, the X-ray machines have silicone-based detectors to which most of the radiation passes through, creating the health risks so many face when participating in treatment. 

However, researchers at Los Alamos and Argonne National Laboratories have developed an X-ray detector that is comprised of calcium titanium oxide. These titanium oxide detectors are more sensitive than silicone-based and will allow the  X-ray imaging system to reduce the radiation they deliver and improve their image fidelity. 

Another positive of the new detector is its core. The new detector contains a thin film of perovskite that can be sprayed onto surfaces; this is unlike silicone devices that need metal deposition and high temperatures to be created.

“Potentially, we could use ink-jet types of systems to print large scale detectors,” added Tsai. “This would allow us to replace half-million-dollar silicon detector arrays with inexpensive, higher-resolution perovskite alternatives,” said Hsinhan (Dave) Tsai, a postdoctoral felloe at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in a press release. 

Watch a Los Alamos video about the new detector here.