“We were the first in the region to offer HIFU and now we are handling one of the highest volumes of HIFU procedures in California,” saidUC Davis Health Urologic SurgeryChairMarc Dall’Era.
Performed using theFocal Onesystem, the procedure offers a non-invasive alternative to traditional surgery. Focused ultrasound works like rays of sunlight that pass through a magnifying glass: The energy is concentrated at a single point, to burn just the cancerous cells.
Advantages of HIFU for prostate cancer patients
Because the focused ultrasound waves heat and destroy only part of the prostate while sparing surrounding healthy tissue, there are numerous benefits, including:
No incisions
No radiation
Fewer side effects
Faster recovery
The outpatient procedure is now available at the new48X Surgery Complexon the UC Davis Health Sacramento campus. Patients are discharged the same day and return home shortly after the hour-long procedure. They can get back to work within a few days and resume physical activities within a matter of weeks.
Marc Dall’Era has performed more than 100 HIFU procedures.
Improving access to the latest technologies to treat cancer
“We’re proud to bring this advanced treatment to our community,” Dall’Era said. “It reflects our commitment to offering options that not only treat cancer but also help preserve quality of life for our patients.”
Not everyone is a candidate for HIFU. Men with more aggressive prostate cancer are likely to need conventional treatment that might includeradical prostatectomy,radiationand/orchemotherapy.
Ideal candidates for HIFU are prostate cancer patients at intermediate risk that need treatment.
Close monitoring of HIFU patients required
“Patients getting HIFU need to be more carefully monitored because there is a risk of the cancer coming back in the area we treated or a new cancer developing in a different region of the prostate,” Dall’Era explained.
Dall’Era said that’s why his patients are watched closely withPSA testing, follow-up imaging and biopsies conducted for at least a year after treatment.
Arecent studyof more than 3,000 men treated at 46 centers found that robotic HIFU delivers similar cancer control to traditional prostate surgery, with significantly lower risks of side effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction.
UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center is the only National Cancer Institute-designated center serving the Central Valley and inland Northern California, a region of more than 6 million people. Its specialists provide compassionate, comprehensive care for more than 100,000 adults and children every year and access to more than 200 active clinical trials at any given time. Its innovative research program engages more than 240 scientists at UC Davis who work collaboratively to advance discovery of new tools to diagnose and treat cancer. Patients have access to leading-edge care, including immunotherapy and other targeted treatments. Its Office of Community Outreach and Engagement addresses disparities in cancer outcomes across diverse populations, and the cancer center provides comprehensive education and workforce development programs for the next generation of clinicians and scientists. For more information, visit cancer.ucdavis.edu.
