N.J.-based Hackensack University Medical Center has added Focal One, a robotic high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) system, in conjunction with Prostate Cancer Awareness Month this September. This technology offers a noninvasive method to address prostate cancer.
Data indicates that one in every eight men will face a prostate cancer diagnosis in their lifetime. Focal One provides an alternative to traditional treatments. Its precision aims to reduce common side effects like urinary incontinence and erectile dysfunction, commonly associated with prostate surgery and radiation therapy.
Focal One uses ultrasound, MRI, and biopsy data to produce a 3D image of the treatment area. This allows urologists to target only the cancerous parts of the prostate without surgery.
For the past 15 years, Hackensack University Medical Center urologist Kevin Basralian, MD, has been traveling worldwide—including the Bahamas, Switzerland, and Canada, where the technology has been approved for years — to perform HIFU procedures for prostate cancer, making him one of the premier physicians in New Jersey at performing HIFU procedures.
Basralian has also participated in research on HIFU for prostate cancer and has been working to raise awareness about focal therapy as an option for patients. “I have patients who come to me for second and third opinions who are not aware that focal therapy is an option,” says Basralian. “The Focal One machine is phenomenal, the treatment is unparalleled, and we want our patients to have access to the therapies that provide them with the best possible outcomes after prostate cancer treatment.”
Hackensack University Medical Center’s Michael D. Stifelman, MD, also commented on the Focal One addition, commenting: “We can now offer our patients access to advanced, incisionless prostate cancer treatment delivered by an expert urologist right here in New Jersey, without the need to travel far from home. We are proud to be at the forefront of urologic cancer care and research—and offering noninvasive Focal One HIFU treatment represents the next frontier in prostate cancer treatment.”
