Focused ultrasound is a noninvasive, therapeutic technology with the potential to improve the quality of life and decrease the cost of care for patients with both primary and metastatic lung tumors. This novel technology focuses beams of ultrasonic energy precisely and accurately on targets in the body with minimal damage to surrounding normal tissue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How it Works<\/strong> One mechanism is the production of precise ablation (thermal destruction of tissue). This destruction can be done to completely destroy the target or to partially treat it. Partial treatment is believed to stimulate the patient\u2019s immune response, which may have a broader impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Challenges in using focused ultrasound to treat lung tumors have been identified. The main obstacles include the movement of the lungs with respiration, the air spaces in the lungs which can disrupt the energy deposition of the ultrasound beams and limitations based on rib coverage of the target. Efforts are underway to address all of these concerns, including the use of one lung filling (OLF), where the patient is ventilated with the non-treatment lung, and the lung to be treated is filled with saline prior to attempting focused ultrasound therapy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n An isolated case was reported at a scientific meeting in which a metastatic tumor located in the anterior portion of the lung was treated with ultrasound-guided focused ultrasound. See the discussion of this case.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Advantages<\/strong> For certain patients, including those whose tumors are non-operable, focused ultrasound could provide a noninvasive treatment option to preserve quality of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It could provide a noninvasive alternative to surgery with less risk of complications \u2013 such as infections and blood clots \u2013 and shorter recovery times. Focused ultrasound’s precise targeting minimizes damage to non-targeted healthy tissue, and there is no risk of radiation-induced fibrosis, which enables multiple repeat treatments if necessary. Focused ultrasound can also be a complement to drug therapy, enabling enhanced delivery of chemotherapy or immunotherapy to tumors, with lower doses of drugs and minimal toxicity. It also may potentially induce an anti-tumor immune response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A clinical trial<\/strong><\/a>\u202ffor patients with lung cancer that has metastasized to the brain has begun recruiting patients in the US.\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Foundation updates these pages regularly, but with the increasing number of clinical trials, we want to be sure that our audience has the latest information available. Therefore, we also added the website search information for the above trials. If you click here<\/strong><\/a>, it will take you to the latest information available from https:\/\/www.clinicaltrials.gov\/<\/a><\/strong>.\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n Search for a treatment center or clinical trial near you.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Preclinical studies suggest that focused ultrasound may play a beneficial role in the treatment of lung tumors. Recent feasibility studies have shown that focused ultrasound can be an effective, minimally invasive way to destroy tumors in the lung, with the potential to target only the tumor and minimal risk of damage to the surrounding tissues. Focused ultrasound could provide a more precise alternative to radiofrequency ablation and offers potential side effects that are significantly more tolerable than those of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. More studies are needed to further establish the safety and efficacy of this treatment modality before research can progress to the clinical stages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n American Cancer Society<\/a> Focused ultrasound for the treatment of lung tumors is not yet approved by regulatory bodies or covered by medical insurance companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wu H, Kim H, Kreager BC, Bruegge RHV,\u00a0Ostras\u00a0O, Chen M, Lee YZ,\u00a0Pinton\u00a0GF, Burks AC, Jiang X. A Miniaturized Multidirectional Stacking Ultrasound Transducer for Endo-bronchoscopy Lung Nodule Ablation<\/strong><\/a>. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 2025 Oct\u00a016;PP.\u00a0doi: 10.1109\/TBME.2025.3622642. PMID: 41100247\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yu X, Zheng S, Zhao L, Zhang K.\u00a0Ultrasound-Mediated Microbubble Disruption to Enhance Radiopharmaceutical Access to the Tumor Microenvironment in Immune-Resistant Lung Carcinoma<\/strong><\/a>. Cancer\u00a0Biother\u00a0Radiopharm. 2025 Sep 26.\u00a0doi: 10.1177\/10849785251371491. PMID: 41005985\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hu C, Fu Q, Gao FF, Zeng J, Xiao W, Li H, Peng L, Huang X, Yang L, Chen WZ, Jiang MY. Ultrasound-Guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Combined With PD-1 Blockade in Patients With Liver Metastases From Lung Cancer: Protocol for a Single-Arm Phase 2 Trial<\/strong><\/a>. JMIR Res Protoc. 2024 Nov 29;13:e59152. doi: 10.2196\/59152. PMID: 39612480 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Yang JB, Powlovich L, Moore D, Martin L, Miller B, Nehrbas J, Tewari AR, Mata J. Transcutaneous Ablation of Lung Tissue in a Porcine Model Using Magnetic-Resonance-Guided Focused Ultrasound (MRgFUS)<\/strong><\/a>. Tomography. 2024 Apr 6;10(4):533-542. doi: 10.3390\/tomography10040042. PMID: 38668399 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Cao R, Huang Z, Nabi G, Melzer A. Patient-Specific 3-Dimensional Model for High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Treatment Through the Rib Cage: A Preliminary Study<\/strong><\/a>. J Ultrasound Med. 2019 Nov 13. doi: 10.1002\/jum.15170.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Where the beams converge, focused ultrasound produces therapeutic effects that could potentially enable lung tumors to be treated without incisions or radiation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The primary treatment options for lung tumors, both primary and secondary, currently include different combinations of surgical resection, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. For primary lung cancer, curative treatment requires complete surgical resection of the tumor. However, more than 50% of patients who are diagnosed with lung cancer have inoperable tumors at the time of diagnosis due to the advanced stage of the disease, insufficient lung function, or patient refusal of a complex surgery.<\/p>\n\n\n\nClinical Trials<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Find a Treatment Site<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Preclinical Laboratory Studies<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Additional Resources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
National Cancer Institute
<\/a>American Lung Association<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nRegulatory Approval and Reimbursement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Notable Papers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n