Cancer Treatment Which ‘Destroys Tumors With Sound’
National Health Service (NHS) patients with liver cancer will become the first in the United Kingdom (UK) and Europe to receive a groundbreaking cancer treatment that uses ultrasound to destroy tumors.
The innovative, non-invasive treatment called histotripsy can break down liver cancer tissue without the need for surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy, while causing minimal damage to surrounding organs, according to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
“Histotripsy is an exciting new technology that will make a huge difference to patients,” Roland Sinker, Chief Executive of Cambridge University Hospitals, said in a news release. “By offering this non-invasive, more targeted treatment, we can care for more people as outpatients and free up time for surgeons to treat more complex cases.”
Histotripsy uses pulsed sound waves to create ‘bubble clouds’ from gases present in targeted tissue and the tumor. These bubble clouds form and collapse within microseconds. The collapsing bubbles release a shockwave that can break up a mass and kill cancerous cells while avoiding the harms of radiation or the need for surgery. It also reduces the risks of bleeding, infection, and damage to surrounding non-targeted tissue.
Treatment typically lasts 30 minutes or less and causes minimal to no pain. Authorities say that the speed of delivery could shorten cancer treatment times, prevent disease progression, and improve cancer survival.
Additionally, since recovery is quick, there is no need for patients to stay in the hospital overnight, according to the DHSC.
“The faster recovery times mean patients will be able to return to their normal lives more quickly, which will also reduce pressure on hospital beds, helping us ensure that patients can receive the right treatment at the right time,” Sinker said in the news release. “We are delighted to be receiving this new state-of-the-art machine.”
The device, called the Edison Histotripsy System, was purchased thanks to a generous donation from Sir Ka-shing Li, a Hong Kong-based philanthropist and longtime supporter of cancer research at the University of Cambridge.
The first NHS patients are scheduled for treatment this summer at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.
Liver Cancer is Increasing Worldwide
More than 800,000 people worldwide are diagnosed with liver cancer each year, and the disease accounts for more than 700 deaths each year, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS).
Additionally, in a study published in 2022 in the Journal of Hepatology, scientists predict that the annual number of new liver cancer cases and deaths will increase by more than 55 percent by 2040.
In the UK, liver cancer is the 17th most common cancer and the eighth most frequent cause of cancer death, according to Cancer Research UK.
The British Liver Trust reports that the number of new cases of liver cancer across the UK has surged by 42 percent over the past decade, and more than 8,000 people received a new liver diagnosis in 2022.
In the United States, the rates of new liver cancer cases have more than tripled since 1980, while the death rates have more than doubled during this time, according to the ACS. This year, the ACS estimates that about 42,240 new liver cancer cases will be diagnosed, and about 30,090 people will die of these cancers.
The good news is that due to recent technologies, the survival rate for liver cancer has increased. The ACS says the survival rate for liver cancer was only three percent 40 years ago. Now, the five-year relative survival rate for liver cancer is 21 percent.
Histotripsy Treatment Developed in the United States
To date, over 1,500 patients worldwide have received the treatment, with the majority located in the United States. The histotripsy treatment was developed by researchers at the University of Michigan, as reported by The University Record. A paper published in the International Journal of Hyperthermia in 2021 referred to histotripsy as a “first-of-its-kind” treatment. HistoSonics, a medical device company with offices in Michigan and Minnesota, manufactures the pioneering histotripsy device.
HistoSonics conducted clinical trials for the technology on patients for whom other treatments had been unsuccessful or unavailable. In Europe, 23 patients were recruited for the histotripsy clinical trial that was completed in 2022.
Data from the 12-month follow-up showed that overall survival rates at one year were 73.3 percent for primary liver cancer and 48.6 percent for those with secondary tumors. The paper, published in the Annals of Surgery journal in April, noted that both tumor control and survival rates were comparable to other current treatments.
The histotripsy machine at Cambridge will be the first in the UK and Europe to treat patients as part of their clinical care pathway, outside the trial setting.
U.S., UK Regulators Approved The Novel Histotripsy Treatment
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved histotripsy technology for the treatment of liver tumors in late 2023.
UK regulators approved the technology through the Innovative Devices Access Pathway, which aims to speed up access to devices that, with sufficient data, demonstrate safety and potential effectiveness, and address an unmet clinical need.
“Bureaucracy has become a handbrake on ambition, stopping innovation in its tracks and holding our health service back,” Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said in a news release. “But through our Plan for Change, we are slashing red tape, so game-changing new treatments reach the NHS front line quicker —transforming healthcare.
The UK’s new device is expected to be fully installed in Cambridge later this year, where it will initially be used to treat patients with primary and secondary liver tumors.
More thorough research is ongoing to explore how this could potentially treat tumors in other organs, such as the pancreas and kidneys. In addition to liver cancer patients, the Virginia-based Focused Ultrasound Foundation believes histotripsy may also be applicable for patients with kidney cancer, soft tissue tumors, and osteosarcoma.
Mishal Mendiratta-Lala, the principal investigator in the clinical trial of the treatment, said that patients with liver cancer may benefit from a combination of histotripsy and another treatment, such as immunotherapy.
“That will move histotripsy from a local therapy into one that can treat tumors globally all over the body and eventually into a cure,” Mendiratta-Lala told The University Record. “In terms of the cancer treatment, that will be the next step, and I feel very excited about the potential.”
Source Links:
https://www.the-independent.com/news/health/fda-histotripsy-liver-cancer-b2433473.html\
https://www.cam.ac.uk/news/cambridge-to-offer-cutting-edge-ultrasound-treatment-for-nhs-cancer-patients-in-uk-first
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/liver-cancer/about/what-is-key-statistics.html#
https://www.iarc.who.int/news-events/number-of-new-cases-and-deaths-from-liver-cancer-predicted-to-rise-by-more-than-55-by-2040/
