New ultrasound forecast to cut Addenbrooke's treatment times
NHS patents will be the first in Europe outside a trial setting to have access to a liver cancer treatment described as "cutting-edge and non-invasive".Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge will start using a histotopsy system, an ultrasound treatment that can be delivered in a single short session. It could potentially take no longer than 30 minutes with limited or no pain and a quick recovery.Roland Sinker, chief executive of Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH), said the technology could make a "huge difference" and reduce cancer treatment times.
The Edison Histotripsy System, made by US-based HistoSonics, is expected to be fully installed at CUH later this year. It will initially be used to treat patients with primary and secondary liver tumours, and research is exploring its potential on treating other hard-to-reach tumours.Mr Sinker said: "Histotripsy is an exciting new technology that will make a huge difference to patients. "By offering this non-invasive, more targeted treatment, we can care for more people as outpatients and free up time for surgeons to treat more complex cases. "The faster recovery times mean patients will be able to return to their normal lives more quickly, which will also reduce pressure on hospital beds, helping us ensure that patients are able to receive the right treatment at the right time."
The incisionless surgery uses pulsed sound waves to create "bubble clouds" from gases present in the targeted tissue.These form and collapse in microseconds, creating mechanical forces able to destroys tumours without surgery, scalpels or radiation.It has been procured following a donation to the University of Cambridge from the Li Ka Shing Foundation, a supporter of cancer research at the university.Prof Deborah Prentice, vice-chancellor of the university, said: "Through his longstanding support of cancer research at Cambridge, Sir Ka-shing Li continues to make a significant impact on outcomes for cancer patients. "Cutting-edge technology such as this histotripsy machine allows Cambridge to remain at the forefront of understanding and treating cancer, a position we aim to strengthen further with Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital."Previously, 23 patients from Europe were recruited in a histotripsy clinical trial. More than 1,500 patients worldwide have received the treatment, mainly in the United States.
Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
32 minutes ago
- The Independent
Bereaved urge ‘truth' as Covid inquiry shifts focus to care homes
Bereaved people whose loved ones died in care homes in the coronavirus pandemic have urged truth and accountability from those appearing before the national inquiry as its focus moves to the care sector. Grieving relatives will give evidence this week as the module looking at the adult social care sector begins. The first week of what is to be a five-week module will also hear from former health secretary Matt Hancock. Mr Hancock, who resigned from government in 2021 after admitting breaking social distancing guidance by having an affair with a colleague, has given evidence to the inquiry multiple times. He will return on Wednesday for a full-day session to face questions specifically about the care sector. In 2023 he admitted the so-called protective ring he said had been put around care homes early in the pandemic was not an unbroken one, and he understood the strength of feeling people have on the issue. At a Downing Street press conference on May 15 2020, Mr Hancock said: 'Right from the start, we've tried to throw a protective ring around our care homes.' Bereaved families have previously called this phrase a 'sickening lie' and a 'joke'. When the pandemic hit in early 2020, hospital patients were rapidly discharged into care homes in a bid to free up beds and prevent the NHS from becoming overwhelmed. However, there was no policy in place requiring patients to be tested before admission, or for asymptomatic patients to isolate, until mid-April. This was despite growing awareness of the risks of people without Covid-19 symptoms being able to spread the virus. The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice (CBFFJ) campaign group said people want answers about decisions made 'at the highest levels of government'. From Monday, module six of the inquiry will look at the effect the pandemic had on both the publicly and privately funded adult social care sector across the UK. Among the issues to be examined will be decisions made by the UK Government and devolved administrations on moving people from hospitals into adult care and residential homes in the early stages of the pandemic. The module will also consider how the pandemic was managed in care and residential homes, including infection prevention and control measures, testing for the virus, the availability and adequacy of personal protective equipment (PPE), and the restrictions on access to such locations by healthcare professionals and loved ones. Charlie Williams' 85-year-old father, Vernute, died at a care home in April 2020. Mr Williams, a member of CBFFJ, said: 'We have been waiting years for this moment. What happened in care homes during the pandemic was not a tragic accident, it was the result of decisions made at the highest levels of government. 'Covid-positive patients were knowingly discharged from hospitals into care homes. There was no testing, no PPE, and no plan to protect the most vulnerable. 'Those in care were left to die. Bereaved families deserve to know who made those decisions and why.' The CBFFJ group has written to inquiry chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett, to express their concern at some 'key decision-makers' not expected to be called in this module, including former prime minister Boris Johnson. Mr Williams said not calling Mr Johnson and other senior figures was 'shocking', adding: 'They were at the centre of government when these choices were made, and the inquiry's decision to exclude them is baffling and deeply damaging to any sense of justice.' He said: 'This is the moment for those responsible to finally tell the truth. We want answers. We want accountability. We want justice.' Members of bereaved groups from across the UK will give evidence on Tuesday, while representatives of the National Care Forum and Royal College of Nursing will give evidence on Thursday. Public hearings for the care sector module are expected to run until the end of July.
BBC News
33 minutes ago
- BBC News
Music therapy hits the right note with Northamptonshire children
New music therapy sessions are already benefitting young patients are two hospitals, staff have programme has been implemented in both the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and Skylark Ward at Kettering General Hospital (KGH).It will soon be introduced at the neonatal ward at Northampton General Hospital (NGH), where it is already helping older are delivered by Miranda Bray from the charity Thomas's Fund, who says music therapy for babies helps "relax them, and get used to external stimulation". Each session is tailored to meet the need and age of the child therapy delivered to the young children on the neonatal ward features an "ocean disk" Bray says the disk "simulates womb sounds" and is "matched to the infant's breathing rhythm".This leads to stabilisation of their breathing and heart rate. Mabel, a 28-day-old baby, has received music therapy whilst on the NICU mum Georgia said: "She's really settled after singing. She just sleeps through it."When I had my first child during Covid, there was nothing like this to support them." The therapy sessions are funded by the National initially acting as a pilot site for music therapy in neonatal units, KGH decided to make it a permanent fixture months Lafferty, matron of the neonatal unit at KGH, said: "We received some great feedback from parents," and sessions were "well received" by babies. Children and young people up to the age of 18 can receive the music sessions at both Northampton General Hospital and Kettering General Kairo is on Skylark Ward at KGH and has benefited from music mum Chinyere Ikey said sessions "break up the day" and allowed her son to "do something different." Staff on the Skylark ward say music therapy sessions have a positive impact on patients, like Green is the play specialist coordinator and said the session turned Kairo from being "introverted and not so sure" to his confidence "blossoming" and the sessions becoming "child led". Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
43 minutes ago
- BBC News
Fox 'coated in bitumen' walks after four weeks at Essex hospital
A fox cub that got covered in bitumen and then stuck to a road surface is healthy and walking again after four weeks of from South Essex Wildlife Hospital rushed to the rescue after the cub was pulled from a container of bitumen by workers on an industrial estate in north-east London last took more than 30 minutes to free each of the cub's legs after it stuck fast to the of his legs required surgery, but the hospital said the fox was now running around with no sign of a limp, and they were hoping for a full recovery soon. Bitumen is made from crude oil and is mostly used as a binder in the time of the rescue, the hospital said the fox's plight was "one of the most horrific cases we've seen in the 35-plus years of wildlife rescue".It took several days and many bottles of baby oil and WD-40 to clean the tar-like substance from its fur. However, after a great deal of care and an operation, the hospital posted on its Facebook page and said the fox was on the mend."It's been four weeks since the surgery to fix his leg (after all the work needed to remove the bitumen from his fur) and we're delighted to say that everything seems to be healing perfectly," it wrote."He is now so confident on the leg that he can run around his pen without any sign of a limp."They added that while it had taken a lot of work to nurse him back to health, "he now has a bright future ahead of him". "He still needs to recover from some muscle loss, but we are very confident that he will be 100% fixed very soon," they the cub is deemed ready, it will be released back into the wild. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
