Cancer Research Technology Announce Collaboration with Hammersmith Hospital to develop High Intensity Focused Ultrasound for the Treatment of Cancer
London, UK, 26 July 2006 – Cancer Research Technology (CRT), the oncology-focused development and commercialisation company wholly owned by Cancer Research UK, today announce that they have entered into an agreement with Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust (London, UK) to develop Phased Array High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) for the treatment of cancer.
HIFU therapy utilises ultrasound energy to heat and destroy tumour tissue whilst leaving surrounding healthy tissue intact. Compared with other cancer treatments, HIFU application has the unique advantages of being non-invasive, capable of precise tumour targeting and is coupled with very few side effects. HIFU therapy is applicable for treatment of a range of cancers including pancreatic, bladder, prostate, kidney and primary and secondary liver cancer and for both curative and palliative therapy.
In general, current HIFU applications are limited by treatment times of several hours duration, which is impractical for routine therapy. Phased Array HIFU has the potential to target larger volumes of tissue than can be currently treated with most existing HIFU technologies. This should result in dramatically reduced treatment times, making HIFU clinically and economically viable.
Within the agreement, Cancer Research UK will fund both the development of a prototype Phased Array HIFU device and proof of concept studies to be carried out by Prof. Jeffrey Hand and Mr Paul Abel at Hammersmith Hospital. CRT will lead the commercialisation of this new technology in consultation with Hammersmith Hospital.
Phil L’Huillier, Director of Business Management at CRT said “It is particularly gratifying that this promising new therapy has the potential to reach the clinic and provide cancer patient benefit within a comparatively short period of time.”
Prof. Hand said “This is an exciting and timely opportunity to develop innovative technology that is expected to facilitate wider clinical use of HIFU.”
Paul Abel said “The extraordinary potential of HIFU is under appreciated. This collaboration underpins the kind of research and development which will increase awareness and accelerate delivery of HIFU as meaningful therapy to many patients with serious illness.”
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For further information:
Cancer Research Technology Limited
Nick Wells, Head of Marketing +44 (0)207 269 3640
nwells@cancertechnology.com
Hammersmith Hospital
Nick Samuels +44 (0)208 383 1720
About Hammersmith Hospital
The Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust, based in northwest London, comprises Hammersmith Hospital, Charing Cross Hospital, Queen Charlotte's & Chelsea Hospital and Ravenscourt Park Hospital.
The Hammersmith Hospitals is a busy acute trust with a strong history of education and research. Charing Cross is an undergraduate teaching hospital and Hammersmith is a post graduate teaching hospital, famous for its research achievements. Queen Charlotte's is world renowned for its maternity and women's and children's services. Ravenscourt Park Hospital operates as a centre for elective orthopaedic surgery.
About Cancer Research Technology Limited
Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT) is an oncology-focused development and commercialisation company that realises cancer patient benefit from publicly- funded research worldwide. CRT works closely with leading international cancer scientists, their institutes and funding bodies to protect, develop and commercialise oncology-related discoveries. CRT is wholly owned by Cancer Research UK, the largest independent funder of cancer research in the world. Further information about CRT can be found at www.cancertechnology.com.
About Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK is Europe's leading cancer charity, dedicated to research into the causes, prevention and treatment of cancer. The charity supports the work of 3,000 scientists, doctors and nurses in over 80 academic centres across the UK, with an annual scientific spend of more than £217 million. Cancer Research UK is the European leader in the development of novel anti-cancer treatments; from their discovery at the laboratory bench to early clinical trials in cancer patients. Further information about Cancer Research UK can be found at www.cancerresearchuk.org.
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