[Transrectal high-intensity focused ultrasound for local treatment of prostate cancer. 2009 Update]

Pulsed robotic high-intensity focused ultrasound (rHIFU) is an interesting therapeutic option mainly due to its noninvasive character. In urologic oncology, rHIFU is used for the transrectal therapy of prostate cancer. While percutaneous therapy of renal cancer using rHIFU is still being tested in experimental studies, transrectal therapy with rHIFU for prostate cancer is already established in more than 230 urologic departments worldwide. The results of prostate cancer therapy with rHIFU are mainly based on different clinical studies. In 2007 a clinical study comparing rHIFU and cryotherapy for the treatment of prostate cancer was initiated in the USA in order to gain clinical approval by the FDA. The most recent publications concluded that the use of rHIFU is an effective standard treatment for prostate cancer with a broad range of indications in all tumor stages: (1) in the primary treatment of local prostate cancer, (2) in patients with local recurrence after failure of any primary treatment, and (3) as an adjuvant therapy in the palliation of systemic prostate cancer.