Robotic Focal HIFU Treatment for Prostate Cancer
No Surgery, No Cutting, No Radiation.
Robotic Focal HIFU has a low risk of side effects such as Erectile Dysfunction and Incontinence.
Methodist Charlton Medical Center offers a noninvasive treatment of early-stage prostate cancer using a technology known as Focal One® Robotic Focal HIFU (high-intensity focused ultrasound). This procedure lessens the risks and side effects that often come with traditional surgery or radiation.
If you are diagnosed with early stage (localized) prostate cancer, you may benefit from HIFU. This treatment takes place in an outpatient setting where a urologist on the Methodist Charlton Medical Staff uses a probe to destroy diseased portions of the prostate without damaging surrounding healthy structures. In all, the procedure itself takes about an hour to an hour and a half, and you will likely get discharged the same day.
While intended as a single, one-day treatment, Robotic Focal HIFU is a repeatable procedure unlike surgery or radiation. In addition, it generally does not take away your ability to have radiation or surgery in the future if needed. Most importantly, it reduces your risk of potential side effects like erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence and penile shrinkage compared with traditional surgery and radiation.
What Is High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU)?
HIFU technology ablates prostate tissue by focusing high-intensity ultrasound waves on the affected area, causing localized heating that destroys the cells in the gland without damaging the healthy surrounding tissue. Focused ultrasound works in the same way as rays of sunlight that pass through a magnifying glass and are concentrated at a single point, equally causing a significant temperature to rise around the focal point.
Advantages Of HIFU Treatments
HIFU is an ideal treatment tool to ablate just the diseased part of the prostate for the optimal preservation of quality of life. HIFU is one of the latest treatment options using focal therapy to treat prostate cancer. The real-time imaging allows for precise local ablation in one session under general anesthesia, repeatable, if necessary, with a low risk of side effects.
- Non-invasive Procedure with no blade, no scar, no radiation, or incision
- Low Risk of Side Effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction
- Quality of Life Preservation with minimal time away from work and leisure activities
The Principle of HIFU
High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) uses an ultrasound probe to deliver high-intensity sound waves at a precise point. The magnitude of ultrasound energy delivered rapidly raises the temperature at the focal point, causing coagulation necrosis without damaging healthy tissue and structures outside the targeted area.
Focal One HIFU Procedure Steps - How A Treatment Works
1. Imaging of the prostate
The whole prostate is scanned by the transrectal ultrasound imaging probe and displayed on the Focal One screen as a three-dimensional reconstruction of the area to be ablated.
2. Prostate treatment planning
On the screen, the urologist plans each step of the procedure, precisely targeting the area to be ablated.
3. HIFU energy delivery
Finally, the system automatically determines the optimal number of lesions based on the planning and produces High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound waves to destroy the targeted cells.
What Happens After Your HIFU Procedure?
At the end of the procedure, a temporary urinary catheter will be placed in order to limit the risk of urinary retention due to the temporary swelling. You will be discharged and can return home rapidly after the end of the procedure. The catheter will be removed at the first follow-up visit just a few days later. Typical follow-up will include PSA testing at three months, six months, and one year, as well as an MRI image and potentially follow-up biopsies at one year to evaluate the result. This follow-up can be performed by the treating urologist, or if you traveled from a remote location, your local urologist.
Clinical Data
In a recent study, Focal One Robotic HIFU proved to have comparable oncological control while offering significantly lower negative impact on functional outcomes when compared to radical prostatectomy.
In this large, prospective study on more than 3,000 patients treated across 46 centers, Focal One Robotic HIFU produced better results for men’s urinary continence and erectile function compared to patients who received surgery.
To learn more, visit https://hifistudy.com/.