MULJIBHAI PATEL UROLOGICAL HOSPITAL (MPUH)

  A ‘NOT-FOR-PROFIT’ TRUST HOSPITAL

SUPER SPECIALTY NEPHRO-UROLOGY HOSPITAL

ISO 9001:2000, CRISIL RATING ‘A’

‘Every life deserves world class care’

        ROBOTIC HIFU Ablatherm –  FIRST TIME IN INDIA

Muljibhai Patel Urological Hospital (MPUH), popularly known as Nadiad Kidney Hospital, has procured and commissioned the state-of-the-art Robotic HIFU Ablatherm – High Intensity Focused Ultrasound - for treatment of Prostate Cancer.  MPUH has become the first hospital in the country to have this state-of-the-art Robotic equipment.

During the Press Conference, well known Urologist and an expert on Robotic HIFU, Dr. Stefan Thuroff from Munich, Germany, explained the stages of prostate cancer; the reasons why prostate cancer is not generally detected early enough to treat it more efficaciously and cost-effectively; the need to build awareness leading to timely preventive check-ups, etc.  He emphasized the fact that the earlier the cancer is detected, faster it becomes to cure prostate cancer.  He also explained the advantages of using Robotic HIFU for the treatment of prostate cancer.  Others present at the press conference included Dr. Mahesh R. Desai, Managing Trustee and Head of Urology, and Dr. M M Rajapurkar, Medical Director and Head of Nephrology.

Early prostate cancer can be cured by surgery or HIFU, but the reality in India is that by the time patient becomes symptomatic, prostate cancer is advanced where nothing much can be done by way of treatment.  We have taken the lead to acquire this new technology for the first time in India which will give more options to treat various stages of prostate cancer from ‘early’ to ‘advanced’.  The beauty of this technology is that it is non-invasive, state-of-the-art technology which is truly robotic.  Robotic means, it designs, acts and re-acts; it has the highest degree of safety and efficacy.

What is HIFU?

HIFU, which is short for High Intensity Focused Ultrasound, is a state-of-the-art technology acoustic ablation technique that utilizes the power of ultrasound to destroy deep-seated tissue with pinpoint accuracy for treatment of prostate cancer. HIFU focuses sound waves in a targeted area which rapidly increases the temperature in the focal zone causing tissue destruction.

In most cases, HIFU is a 1 – 2.5 hour, one-time procedure performed under spinal anesthesia. Unlike radiation, HIFU is non-ionizing; this means that HIFU may also be used as a salvage technique if other prostate cancer treatments fail, like Radiation or Surgery, both of which are painful and requires hospitalization for 4-5 days.

How Does HIFU Work Against Prostate Cancer?

In order to understand the basic concept of how HIFU works, an analogy can be drawn between HIFU ablating the prostate and sunrays entering a magnifying glass to burn a leaf. When a magnifying glass is held above a leaf in the correct position on a sunny day the sunrays intersect below the lens and cause the leaf to burn at the point of intersection.  If you insert your hand into the path of either one of the sun rays individually, away from the point of intersection, there is no significant heat felt or harm caused. Alternatively, if you place your hand at the point of intersection you will be burned.

The scientific principles at work in this example are the same as those with HIFU. Instead of light as the energy source, HIFU utilizes sound. Instead of a magnifying glass HIFU uses a transducer. Just as the individual sunray is harmless to the hand, and individual sound wave is harmless to the healthy tissue it travels through.

During HIFU, the physician uses continuously updated real-time images of the prostate to map out and execute the entire treatment plan. These images show treatment progression and permit the physician to customize treatment for maximum safety and effectiveness.

The Benefits

·                    Non-invasive treatment

·                    Destruction of the cancerous tissue with minimal effect to the surrounding organs

·                    Treatment does not use radiation

·                    Treatment can be performed under spinal anesthesia

·                    Treatment can be repeated

·                    Other therapeutic alternatives can be considered if results are unsatisfactory.

·                    Ablatherm HIFU can be used for all tumor stages as for the treatment of local recurrences (i.e. after external beam radiotherapy).