Ultrasound cancer treatment, supported by Li Ka-shing, gains traction in Asia: US expert

Name: SCMP
Telephone: +852-2680-8888

Focused ultrasound, backed by Li Ka-shing, is emerging as a non-invasive, commercially viable cancer treatment, attracting significant investments

Reading Time:3 minutes

Why you can trust SCMP

Neal Kassell, a neurosurgeon, is the founder and chairman of US-based Focused Ultrasound Foundation. Photo: Sun Yeung

Eric Ng

Published: 2:00pm, 29 Sep 2024Updated: 7:09pm, 29 Sep 2024

Focused ultrasound, a non-invasive medical treatment supported by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing, is being recognised as a commercially attractive alternative to traditional therapies for many diseases including cancer, according to an expert.

As the number of treatments and clinical trials have increased in recent years, the developers of devices that generate high-intensity sound waves to target and ablate diseased tissues have attracted investments, according to Neal Kassell, founder and chairman of US-based Focused Ultrasound Foundation.

“The growth in the number of treatments, clinical trials and research sites, and the fact that equipment manufacturers are getting investments from strategic investors and major financial institutions, are indications that focused ultrasound is scaling up,” the former co-chair of neurosurgery at the University of Virginia said.

He cited US-based HistoSonics, a maker of focused ultrasound devices, which has caught the eye of investors. The Li Ka Shing Foundation donated a device made by HistoSonics to the University of Hong Kong for destroying liver tumours. The company, which completed a US$102 million series D financing round last month, counts a unit of healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson as one of its investors.

The Hong Kong billionaire’s charity last month announced that it would donate two such machines to the city’s hospitals, sponsor the treatment of 20 patients and support the training of six doctors and radiologists by HistoSonics.

“It’s one of several devices that can treat liver cancer, but it uses a technology that breaks up and dissolves the tumour cells,” Kassell said. “This contrasts with thermal ablation, which destroys the tissues by heating them.”