DR. GEORGE M. SUAREZ PERFORMING LIFE HIFU CASES
www.hifumedicalexpert.com
Doctors Hospital has been a pioneer in minimally and non-invasive surgeries
in the Bahamas with the first Laparoscopic colon surgery performed locally in
2009; today high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has been added to its
portfolio for treatment of prostate cancer. Doctors Hospital thus joins a select
group of hospitals that is offering this innovative treatment for prostate
cancer and becomes the first hospital in the Bahamas to offer this
technology.
HIFU delivered with the Sonablate® 500 medical device (“Sonablate HIFU”)
destroys prostatic tissue with extreme heat generated from focused ultrasound
waves. Initially, the Sonablate captures real-time images of the prostate gland,
allowing the physician to create a customized treatment plan for each patient.
The physician then uses the Sonablate to deliver the ultrasound energy to
extremely small target sites, or focal points, throughout the prostate gland.
The ultrasound energy is delivered in rapid-fire succession to targeted tissue
throughout the gland. The tissue at each target is destroyed while surrounding
tissue remains unharmed.
HIFU treatment typically is a one-time, 2-4 hour procedure performed on an
out-patient basis under spinal anesthesia. Patients generally are up and walking
within hours after HIFU and can return to a normal lifestyle within a couple of
days.
Considered a promising technology within the non-invasive or minimally
invasive therapy segments of medical technology, HIFU uses non-ionizing, or
clean, energy and may be repeated if necessary should there be a recurrence and
may be used as a salvage therapy if some other treatments have failed.
Men over age 50 years are still encouraged to have an annual rectal
examination and a blood test called a PSA as prostate cancer is the most common
non-skin cancer in men and the third leading cause of male cancer deaths
worldwide.
The newest facility to become a part of the US HIFU international treatment
program, Doctors Hospital joins more than one hundred (100) centers in
thirty-plus countries to offer the innovative treatment. The program provides
patients from the United States access to the Sonablate technology in
international facilities. Just a forty-five minute flight from Florida, this
high- tech procedure can now be offered close to home for some US patients and
in a beautiful island setting.
According to an article published in one of the local dailies, there is a
sizeable medical tourism market for the Bahamas to tap into. In 2007, some seven
hundred and fifty thousand (750,000) Americans traveled abroad for overseas
medical services, spending approximately $2.1 billion. The former number is
predicted to swell to within six million by the end of this year.
Poised to take advantage of the door the medical tourism opens, Doctors
Hospital recently accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI), Doctors
Hospital joins an elite group of few hospitals worldwide, which have passed
JCI’s stringent clinical quality standards. Joint Commission International (JCI)
is the global arm of the US-based Joint Commission on the Accreditation of
Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO); The distinction certifies that the hospital’s
programs meet international standards and follow the latest US clinical
guidelines establishing it as a facility with exceptionally high standards, and
as part of a high-quality network offering highly-skilled doctors,
state-of-the-art equipment and innovative treatment.
Source: Doctors Hospital
George M. Suarez, M.D., renowned South Florida Urologist, will be performing life HIFU cases in the Bahamas that will televised at NYU’s Prostate Cancer Symposium this weekend. This will be done over the internet, via a unique private virtual network owned and operated by USHIFU.
Dr. Suarez is the founder and Medical Director, Emeritus of USHIFU, and the single most experienced HIFU physician in the world. He has trained the vast majority of Urologists performing HIFU. He has also been involved with the teaching, training and educational materials of HIFU, dating back for almost 10 years.
Do not miss this educational program that will the first of its kind.
For additional information on HIFU and on Dr. George M. Suarez, please visit www.hifumedicalexpert.com or his blog: http://hifuexpertsinmiami.blogspot.com
Owen diagnosed with cancer
Published June 17, 2010
Randy Owen stunned attendees at his annual fan club party in Fort
Payne last week by announcing he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.
According to a press release, Owen has undergone treatment since the
beginning of May that “has been deemed a complete success.”
Dr. Woody
Fritz, of Birmingham, first detected the cancer during a routine checkup for
Owen – he noticed an elevated level of a prostate specific antigen in a blood
test, the release said.
Fritz referred Owen to Dr. Ronald Wheeler, an
expert in high intensity focused ultrasound and medical director of the
Diagnostic Center for Disease in Sarasota, Fla.
HIFU is a process used
to treat prostate cancer by focusing ultrasound beams to destroy diseased
tissue. Owen chose the HIFU procedure as his form of cancer treatment, and Dr.
Wheeler performed the procedure in early May.
“After my routine
six-month physical, I was referred by Dr. Fritz to Dr. Wheeler, and I feel very
good and positive about my future,” Owen said. I look forward to seeing the fans
and doing what I do.”
Wheeler said Owen’s case is an example of how early
detection of cancer can save lives.
“Randy did everything right by
having his PSA checked regularly, avoiding random biopsy, and educating himself
about his treatment options,” said Wheeler. “He has set an example all men
should follow to beat prostate cancer and live an excellent quality of
life.
“We are happy with the successful outcome of the treatment. Randy
is doing great and is just about fully recovered.”
Janice Jones, of
Pensacola, Fla., was present when Owen made the announcement last Saturday. She
said Owen played for two hours, then his wife Kelly got on stage with him and he
said he had an announcement.
“I just figured he would say that he was
tired or he wanted to spend more time with his family,” she said. “He said ‘you
are the fans who have stood with me all this time, so I will tell you I have
cancer.’ It just blew me out of the water.”
Jones said she and other fans
were saddened by the announcement.
“I started hearing Alabama when they
were at the Bowery in South Carolina,” she said. “I’ve been to 350 concerts,
every June Jam and I’m a Randy Owen fan club member.”
As the front man
for Alabama, Owen racked up sales of more than 73 million albums, including 21
gold, platinum and multi-platinum certifications, 42 No. 1 singles and a mantle
filled with more than 150 industry awards. Owen released his debut solo album,
“One On One,” and “Born Country” memoir in November 2008.
Owen has
actively worked to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital through events
like the Country Cares for St. Jude Kids radiothon program he co-founded in
1989. It alone has raised more than $365 million to date for the charity.
Owen said he would continue to tend to his cattle business in Fort Payne
through the summer and plans to resume touring in mid-September.
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AUA Annual Convention in San Francisco
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GEORGE M. SUAREZ. M.D.in twitter, facebook and on http://hifuexpertsinmiami.blogspot.com
HIFU IN BERMUDA
High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) Treatment for Prostate Cancer Now Available in Bermuda
US HIFU Selects Bermuda for Easy Access toTreatment
for Patients and Physicians in the Northeast
PR Newswire
CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 17
CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 17 /PRNewswire/ -- US HIFU, a worldwide leader in the development, distribution and use of minimally invasive high intensity focused ultrasound ("HIFU") technologies, is pleased to announce that its HIFU treatment for prostate cancer is now available in Bermuda. King Edward VII Memorial Hospital in Bermuda joins more than 100 centers in 30-plus countries to offer the innovative treatment with the Sonablate® 500 medical device.
Bermuda is the newest location to become part of US HIFU's international treatment program, which provides patients from the U.S. access to the Sonablate technology ("Sonablate HIFU") in international facilities where it is approved or authorized, since Sonablate HIFU is in the final phase of the FDA clinical trials and not approved for use in the U.S. As part of the US HIFU international treatment program, which began in 2004, patients and physicians travel to the Bahamas, Mexico, Canada and other jurisdictions outside the U.S. for the procedure.
"We were strategic in our selection of Bermuda so we could open up access to Sonablate HIFU for interested patients and physicians in the northeast," said US HIFU's CEO Steve Puckett, Jr. regarding the company's decision to introduce Sonablate HIFU in Bermuda at this time. "For ease of transportation, we expect to see a good number of patients and doctors from that area and eastern seaboard in general, but Bermuda's King Edward VII Memorial Hospital is just one more high-caliber choice open to any patients and doctors throughout the country."
Dr. Donald Thomas, the hospital's chief of staff, said, "We are very pleased to be able to offer this treatment. As we are only about a two-hour flight from the eastern U.S., we can offer this high-tech procedure very close to home for some U.S. patients in a stunningly beautiful island setting."
The first two patients were treated at the beginning of May by Dr. Stephen Scionti, NYU clinical associate professor of urology, who has been involved with Sonablate HIFU since 2006.
"The hospital is a modern, first-rate organization staffed by world-class physicians. As with the other US HIFU facilities, I believe patients can feel as confident in traveling offshore for the treatment as they can in going to their local hospital for an already approved procedure," said Scionti. "As a physician working away from my regular office, I am able to focus on my patients and their treatment when everything in the venue is in perfect order; King Edward VII Memorial Hospital was no exception."
Sonablate HIFU is designed as a minimally invasive prostate cancer treatment. International, 10-year data shows that men who choose Sonablate HIFU may be able to treat their disease while also minimizing risk for significant side effects common with prostate cancer therapies such as surgery or radiation. The technology allows physicians to ablate prostatic tissue with extreme heat generated from focused ultrasound waves. The ultrasound energy is delivered in rapid-fire succession to targeted tissue throughout the gland. The tissue at each target is destroyed while surrounding tissue remains unharmed.
Atlanta-resident Robert Jenkins, who received his HIFU treatment on Saturday, May 1, said, "From my perspective—and my physician's—everything ran like clockwork, from the procedure to the logistics involved with traveling to a different location. The staff was focused, friendly, caring and made sure I felt right before I left."
Regarding the future of Sonablate HIFU in Bermuda, Puckett said, "The current therapy involves whole gland ablation but we are looking ahead to the focal treatment of prostate cancer, beginning with the upcoming UK clinical trials. Bermuda is slated to be the international specialty site for our focal HIFU procedure."
About US HIFU US HIFU (USHIFU, LLC), a privately held healthcare company, is a world leader in minimally invasive high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) technologies. US HIFU manufactures the Sonablate® 500 medical device and is focused currently on treating primary and recurrent prostate cancer using Sonablate® HIFU. The company is engaged in ongoing research for technological advancements for the Sonablate® system or other ultrasound applications.
About the Sonablate® 500 The Sonablate® 500 is a minimally invasive medical device that utilizes ultrasound energy to destroy tissue within the body. It was developed by Focus Surgery, Inc. and is manufactured in part by Misonix, Inc. (Nasdaq: MSON), which also holds distribution rights in Europe. Takai Hospital Supply Ltd. distributes the Sonablate® 500 in Southeast Asia. The Sonablate® 500 is not approved for use in the U.S. The Sonablate® 500 remains investigational in the U.S. and is being studied for the treatment of prostate cancer in clinical trials in the U.S. FDA has made no decision as to the safety or efficacy of the Sonablate® 500 for the treatment of prostate cancer.
SOURCE US HIFU
Dr. George M. Suarez, founder and Medical Director, Emeritus of USHIFU and International HIFU, and recognized as the most experienced HIFU physician in North America, gave a presentation in Salt Lake City, Utah, on May 12, 2010, on High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU). The presentation was titled “Minimally Invasive Treatment Options for Localized Prostate Cancer: The Status of HIFU in 2010.”
The conference was attended by University of Utah Urology faculty and members of the local urologic community, as well as several medical and radiation oncologists, therapists, internists, and interventional radiologists. The evening seminar was hosted by Western Urological Clinic, spearheaded by their HIFU trained physicians, particularly, Dr. Steven Gange, the most experienced HIFU trained doctor in the region.
There was great interest and enthusiasm by the group, as well as recognition that HIFU with the Sonablate - 500 has become an integral treatment option for patients with localized prostate cancer. The Western Urological Group have all been trained, or exposed to the technology. Dr. Gange’s passion for HIFU is evident in when he states: “You can’t argue with the excellent cure of prostate cancer and preservation of quality of life after treatment with HIFU. It stands alone as the most promising therapy for urologic cancer of all times“. He further stated: “The patient is cured, he has no down time (same day recovery) and back to work the next day, but in addition, they remain sexually active and with full urinary control."
Dr. Gange was recently featured in "Healthy Utah Magazine" and on ABC, Salt Lake City.
For further information on Western Urological Clinic, and Dr. Gange, please visit www.westernhifu.com or call (801) 993-1800
NEWS on Alternative Treatments for Prostate Cancer >>
International HIFU News Room
Read the latest news and articles about HIFU
CBC News on Prostate Cancer - HIFU Treatment
Most of my friends and family know about my dad’s condition with prostate
cancer. CBC interviewed him and followed his treatment at a HIFU (High Intensity
Focused Ultrasound) clinic in downtown Toronto. What is interesting about this
video is the ’spin’ created that my dad and I noticed (I was there for both
shootings). CBC was more interested in creating a segment about the controversy
about HIFU since it’s long term effects are ‘apparently’ unstudied. This is not
true. HIFU has been around for 15 years in Europe (3 in Canada) and has a very
high success rate. However, CBC decided to leave the treatment up in the air
even though it is confirmed as the best treatment for early prostate cancer.
This goes to prove that news broadcasters have to create fear even in the best
of times. If something as simple and mundane as cancer treatment can be spun,
think about everything else you watch. My dad is on the road to full recovery.
He is always cheery, cracking jokes, giving hugs and most importantly fighting
his condition to the best of his ability. His loving family and countless
friends wish him a speedy recovery. Be media literate. Question everything.
HIFU for prostate cancer in the news. Click here to view the “New Procedure Can Pinpoint Cancer” video.
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