Tumor-destroying soundwaves receive FDA approval for liver treatment in humans. A newly developed technique provides a non-invasive alternative to surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Histotripsy, a noninvasive therapy that uses precisely focused ultrasound waves to mechanically destroy liver tumors without surgery. Guided by a robotic system, the treatment generates microscopic bubbles within the targeted tumor.
These bubbles rapidly expand and collapse, breaking apart cancer cells and liquefying the tumor while largely preserving nearby healthy blood vessels, bile ducts, and surrounding tissue. The technology has been cleared for treating both primary and metastatic liver tumors and requires no incisions, needles, ionizing radiation, or chemotherapy drugs. Performed as an outpatient procedure, histotripsy typically allows