What is HIFU?

HIFU is an investigational, minimally invasive ‘acoustic ablation’ therapy. Acoustic ablation uses intersecting, precision-focused ultrasound waves to raise the temperature of the cancerous tissue to more than 80–90 degrees Celsius in seconds, effectively destroying the tissue. It is analogous to the way a camera lens or eyeglass lens focuses light, but with sound waves instead of light rays.

Unlike radiation therapies, ultrasound energy is non-ionizing “clean energy” that does not affect tissue surrounding the target zone.

What is the Sonablate® 500?

The Sonablate® 500, the device used in the NYU HIFU clinical trial, has been approved in many countries outside the U.S. as an image-guided acoustic ablation device for prostate disease therapy. The technology behind the device originated at the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis in the 1970s, and has been further developed in leading research centers across the globe. In 2001, the Sonablate® 500 was approved for distribution in Europe and Japan. It is also approved for use in Canada, China, Australia, Costa Rica, Mexico, India, South Africa and the Caribbean.