National Cancer Institute
Though we’ve made incredible strides in the treatment and prevention of brain cancer, more than 24,000 Americans are still affected by brain cancer every year— resulting in more than 18,000 deaths in just 2023 alone, according to the American Cancer Society.
Treatment options usually involve some sort of combination of surgery and chemotherapy. However, brain cancers are notably resistant to chemotherapy thanks to what’s called the blood-brain barrier: a protective lining of blood vessels around the brain to protect it from harmful large molecules. Unfortunately, it’s a double-edged sword that also makes it difficult for chemotherapy drugs to actually target tumor cells that are hiding behind the barrier.
One way to get past the barrier is via ultrasound, which moves the blood vessels just enough to allow drug compounds through. This is also quite difficult to accomplish, since the skull is an even bigger barrier that stops ultrasound in the first place. Doctors get around this by placing ultrasound devices around the skull and focusing ultrasound waves using an MRI immediately after chemotherapy has been given.