Cancer is a condition caused by abnormal growth of cells in the body. This abnormal growth is very detrimental to the body and often leads to death, and the few treatments that we do have, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, are also very hard on the body. For lots of people, if you were to ask them what they would do with one wish, a lot of them would likely say something along the lines of “a cure for cancer.” Well, promising new research from the University of Michigan has shown that ultrasound may be an effective method of treating tumors, bringing us one step closer to a cure. 

The research conducted by the scientists at the University of Michigan was done using a technique known as histotripsy. “Histotripsy is a novel, non-invasive, non-ionizing, and non-thermal ablation technique that mechanically destroys target tissue by controlled acoustic cavitation.” In simpler terms, that means that histotripsy is a way of removing tumors from the body that does not rely on radiation, surgical intervention, or heat, and instead treats tumors using ultrasound waves, the same technology that is used to take pictures of developing fetuses. This technique would be much better for cancer patients than the current therapies that we are using, because it would be significantly less harsh on the body and cause much fewer complications. 

The research that was conducted by the University of Michigan was conducted on lab rats. The rats that were experimented on all had liver tumors given to them by the reasearchers. The scientists conducting the experiment used histotripsy treatments on half of the rats, and the other half of the rats were a control group that received no treatment on their tumors. The experimental group of rats “received partial histotripsy ablation (approximately 50–75% of the tumor volume was targeted for ablation by histotripsy).” This means that the ultrasound waves were only focused on a portion of the tumors, and not the entire tumor. The scientists then waited seven days and checked the size of the tumors in all of the rats, and checked for cancer metastasis and remission.  

The results of the experiment are very hopeful. “This study demonstrated the potential of histotripsy for successful non-invasive tumor ablation, and prevention of local tumor progression and metastasis.” While this study had a relatively small population experimented on, the results are showing that histotripsy is a promising technology for cancer treatments. “Even with partial ablation of the tumor volume, >80% histotripsy-treated animals demonstrated local tumor regression, with no local recurrence or metastasis, and had significantly improved survival, as compared to 100% control animals, demonstrating local tumor progression and intra-hepatic metastases.” 81% of the experimental group had regression in their tumors, and all of those 81% had no metastasis or remission. The rats that received the histotripsy treatment also showed an increase in immune system response and activity, showing that this treatment is not only effective in removing some portions of the tumor, but also in spurring the immune system on to help fight against the remaining portions of the tumor.

This is an excellent result, and shows that histotripsy is effective in treating cancer. “This study demonstrated the potential of histotripsy for successful non-invasive tumor ablation, and prevention of local tumor progression and metastasis.” This promising research has hopefully opened the door for more research involving histotripsy on treating cancer, and is an important step in eradicating cancer. Histotripsy is much less invasive and harsh on the body than immunotherapy, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Hopefully one day this technology can be used on people, and cancer will no longer be a problem for us to have to deal with.