A research team at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine has begun a world-first clinical trial exploring the use of focused ultrasound to treat sarcoid tumors in horses.
Sarcoids are the most common form of equine skin tumor, and though they are benign, they are invasive and can pose a serious health risk to nearby vital structures or become infected. Current treatment options include surgical excision, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy, but these treatments can be limited by anatomic location, and recurrence is common. If left untreated, horses with sarcoids can require euthanasia due to poor quality of life.
The trial, led by Sophie Bogers, PhD, DACVS, assistant professor in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, will explore the safety and feasibility of using histotripsy – a non-thermal method of using focused ultrasound to mechanically destroy targeted tissue – to treat equine sarcoid tumors. The team will use a histotripsy system customized to treat shallow targets. The study parameters were developed based on the Virginia Tech team’s positive results using a similar method to treat canine and feline soft tissue sarcomas. Following the histotripsy treatment, the research team will surgically remove the sarcoids to assess the tumor’s immune response to the treatment.
In all five horses will be enrolled. The first participant was treated earlier this month.
“We are so fortunate to be able to study histotripsy as an emerging therapy for horses,” said Dr. Bogers. “Sarcoids have long been a clinical frustration for veterinarians and owners, alike. The horses seem to tolerate treatment extremely well, and I am excited to develop it into a viable option for horses suffering from these tumors.”
This trial is being funded by the Focused Ultrasound Foundation and represents an important milestone in the Foundation’s Veterinary Program. Histotripsy treatment costs are covered by the clinical trial. Tumors will be surgically removed 24 hours after treatment by a board-certified equine surgeon (Dr. Bogers). Owners are responsible for travel expenses.
Horses represent both unique challenges and opportunities within veterinary medicine, and we have been interested in bringing focused ultrasound to this patient population since the inception of the Veterinary Program. There are many unmet clinical needs both in oncology and regenerative and sports medicine that focused ultrasound could address.
Named a Focused Ultrasound Center of Excellence earlier this year, Virginia Tech’s program spans departments, disciplines, and geography (Roanoke, Blacksburg, and Washington DC) with the potential to impact human and animal lives in areas of critical unmet need such as neurological disorders and hard-to-treat cancers.
How to Participate Ideal candidates for this trial are horses diagnosed with sarcoids located on the trunk, abdomen, or neck, with no previous treatment of the tumor within 6 months.