Avenda Health partners with EDAP for robotic prostate procedures

EDAP TMS SA, a developer of robotic energy-based therapies, and Avenda Health last week announced plans to use Avenda’s Unfold AI to launch the Focal One robotic system for high-intensity focused ultrasound, or HIFU, procedures. The companies signed a collaboration agreement to offer personalized prostate cancer care. 

Unfold AI is Avenda Health’s multimodal, artificial intelligence decision-support platform cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Culver City, Calif.-based company said it brings “superhuman” abilities to cancer surgeons and oncologists.

Unfold AI builds 3D, patient-specific cancer maps that reveal previously invisible tumor extent, claimed Avenda Health. It is intended to help physicians avoid leaving cancerous tissue behind while sparing healthy surrounding tissue.

By using Unfold AI’s planning with the Focal One robotic HIFU platform, EDAP and Avenda asserted that urologists can provide a more tailored, patient-specific HIFU ablation procedure for their prostate cancer patients.

Prostate cancer a growing problem

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men in 112 different countries, and it makes up about 15% of all male cancers around the world, according to a Lancet Commission on Prostate Cancer report. It’s also on the rise. The report estimated that the number of new prostate cancer cases will jump from 1.4 million in 2020 to 2.9 million by 2040. 

“Incorporating AI technology into the diagnostics and treatment planning for patients with prostate cancer enables urologists to more accurately pinpoint the presence of tumor cells,” stated Wayne G. Brisbane, M.D. and assistant professor of urology at The University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) David Geffen School of Medicine.

“Having performed the first Focal One procedures utilizing data from Unfold AI, the seamless integration of these two technologies can precisely guide the ablation for optimized oncologic control without damaging healthy surrounding structures, hence minimizing the risk of side effects,” he added.

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Avenda Health applies AI to detection 

Avenda Health spun out from UCLA with support from a National Cancer Institute grant in 2017. The company said that treating the entire prostate using traditional methods leads to urinary and sexual dysfunction in more than 50% of patients.

In addition, treating prostate cancer focally leaves to 24% to 49% of patients with residual cancer, it noted. Patients treated with Unfold AI are 71% more likely to be cancer-free, Avenda claimed.

Avenda said that while an MRI only sees 34% of cancer, Unfold AI can detect 97% of cancer. This gives doctors more clarity when selecting treatment options, allowing them to better preserve their quality of life and avoid leaving cancer behind. 

“We are pleased to enter into this collaboration with the Focal One team,” said Shyam Natarajan, Ph.D. and CEO of Avenda Health. “Unfold AI is a highly complementary technology that when combined with Focal One robotic HIFU, will enable urologists to map cancer effectively so that the entire tumor can be confidently eradicated.”

“This exciting collaboration with Focal One represents a unique opportunity for Avenda to introduce our groundbreaking AI technology to a broad community of leaders in the field of prostate cancer to further improve outcomes,” he said.

EDAP said Focal One combines the latest imaging and ablation technologies. The Lyon, France-based company said its system meets all requirements for focal ablation: accurate MRI and 3D Biopsy image fusion and a non-invasive approach, as well as precise and efficient HIFU energy.