Focused ultrasound shows promise as treatment for advanced renal cancer

High intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) appears to be a safe and potentially effective treatment of advanced stage renal malignancy, according to a report published in the December issue of The Journal of Urology.

In contrast to other therapies such as radiofrequency ablation and cryoablation, HIFU is noninvasive. In animal experiments, the technique has been shown to selective induce coagulative necrosis of targeted tumors. Moreover, HIFU has shown promise as treatment for prostatic hyperplasia and localized prostate cancer in humans.In the current study, Dr. Feng Wu and colleagues, from Chongqing University in China, tested HIFU in 12 patients with advanced renal cancer and in 1 patient with colon cancer metastases to the kidney. Three patients underwent complete tumor ablation and ten underwent partial ablation for palliative reasons.HIFU was successfully completed in all patients, the investigators note. HIFU therapy was associated with resolution of hematuria in 7 of 8 patients and with disappearance of flank pain in 9 of 10 patients. Postoperatively, Doppler ultrasound revealed a reduction or absence of tumor blood supply in 10 of 13 patients. MRI imaging in seven patients revealed significant tumor shrinkage.In general, HIFU was well tolerated with minimal complications. The first patient to undergo the procedure did develop a minor skin burn, but this healed two weeks later. After a median follow-up period of 14.1 months, six patients had died, six remained alive, and one was lost to follow-up. “To our knowledge these clinical data demonstrate for the first time that patients with renal malignancy can be treated noninvasively with extracorporeal HIFU,” Dr. Wu’s team notes. “A randomized clinical trial with longer followup is necessary to determine the future role of this novel treatment of renal cell carcinoma.”(Source: J Urol 2003;170:2237-2240: Reuters Health: December 15, 2003: Oncolink)