Xin Chen Uses Ultrasound on Tumors
Xin Chen is testing the use of MR-guided focused ultrasound to destroy hypoxic cancer cells.
Xin Chen is using MR (magnetic-resonance)-guided focused ultrasound (FUS) to destroy hypoxic (oxygen-deprived) tumor cells that usually resist radiation and chemotherapy in areas like the liver, prostate and breast.
Chen is exploring the feasibility of a new technique to detect hypoxic areas in tumors and use MR-guided FUS to selectively ablate them prior to regular radiation therapy to produce more complete destruction of solid tumors caused by various types of cancers.
Chen and colleagues at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences are testing the technique through preclinical studies using a mouse tumor model and PET/MRI guidance.
“Due to the advanced development in the MR-guided FUS system, PET imaging and the image-processing algorithm, there are no technical difficulties to translate this method to clinical practices,” Chen says.
“The translation of FUS to tumor treatment has been hampered by its long treatment time,” Chen notes. The significantly shortened treatments permitted by the new method could facilitate the use of FUS therapies in a wider range of tumors.
Chen is an assistant professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. He has received a $100,000 Research Award from the Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation.
"The translation of FUS to tumor treatment has been hampered by its long treatment time," he notes. Because the new method involves significantly shortened treatments, Chen believes it could facilitate the use of FUS therapies in a wider range of tumors.