i3 - November/December 2019 - 46
Policy
By Gary Shapiro and John Grisham
P O L I CY U P DAT E
T
umors. Kidney stones. Parkinson's tremors. These medical conditions have something important in common.
They all have the potential to be treated by an earlystage, non-invasive technology called focused ultrasound. This
technology will drastically change health care as we know it -
and we both feel a mission to share its existence with the world.
Gary Shapiro (left), John Grisham
(middle) and Dr. Neal Kassell
(right) at a panel for Gary's Book
Club at CES last year.
Focused ultrasound (FUS) uses ultrasonic energy to target tissue deep in the
body without incisions or radiation. An
outpatient treatment, FUS causes minimal discomfort, leaves no scars and
involves only short recovery times. Its
overall costs are also usually less than
other treatments on the market today.
John has been friends with Dr. Neal
Kassell, chairman of the Focused
Ultrasound Foundation (FUSF), for
many years. Kassell repeatedly urged
him to sit on the organization's board
- an offer he accepted after both his
sister and his mother received diagnoses of cancerous tumors. Their diagnoses and his passion for FUS technology
inspired him to team up with Kassell to
write The Tumor, a short novel about
the power of FUS to save lives. He considers it the most important book of
his career - and he is so determined
to spread the word about FUS that he
is giving it away for free.
46
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019
As head of CTA, Gary has long had
the privilege of seeing how technology
is solving major problems in health
care. He has seen firsthand how virtual
reality can help alleviate post-traumatic
stress disorder; how 3D printers can
build prosthetic limbs at a fraction of
the cost of traditional prosthetics; and
how breath sensors can perform rapid
How FUS Works
The fundamental principle of FUS is
analogous to using a magnifying glass to
focus beams of sunlight on a single point
to burn a hole in a leaf. What this means
is that focused ultrasound can gain
access to the brain, to tumors, to blood
clots and to other areas of the body with
extreme precision and accuracy but
without harming healthy tissue.
Technologies like this that replace
labor-intensive, costly therapies can not
only make treatment less painful and
more effective for patients, but they can
help drive down health care spending.
With health care global spending
expected to increase 163% between
2014 and 2040, advances in health tech
can solve some of the world's biggest
health care challenges. The U.S. alone
spends over $3.5 trillion a year - over
$10,000 per person - on health care.
With 45% of Americans having at least
one chronic disease, 75% of U.S. health
care spending goes toward the treatments of these diseases.
Bottom: Phanie Agency/Science Source
This Technology Is Going
to Change Health Care
health scans by recording key vital
signs. Then, a few years ago, he heard
about focused ultrasound, and its possibilities were so far-reaching that they
eclipsed anything he had seen before.
At CES 2018, John spoke about the
power of this innovative new technology
and its potential to give individuals grappling with cancer and many other serious
diseases longer and better-quality lives.
There, a shared mission was born.
FUS uses ultrasonic
energy to target deep
tissue without incisions or radiation
improving outcomes
and recovery time.
I T I S I N N O VAT I O N
i3 - November/December 2019
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of i3 - November/December 2019
i3 - November/December 2019 - Cover1
i3 - November/December 2019 - Cover2
i3 - November/December 2019 - 1
i3 - November/December 2019 - 2
i3 - November/December 2019 - 3
i3 - November/December 2019 - 4
i3 - November/December 2019 - 5
i3 - November/December 2019 - 6
i3 - November/December 2019 - 7
i3 - November/December 2019 - 8
i3 - November/December 2019 - 9
i3 - November/December 2019 - 10
i3 - November/December 2019 - 11
i3 - November/December 2019 - 12
i3 - November/December 2019 - 13
i3 - November/December 2019 - 14
i3 - November/December 2019 - 15
i3 - November/December 2019 - 16
i3 - November/December 2019 - 17
i3 - November/December 2019 - 18
i3 - November/December 2019 - 19
i3 - November/December 2019 - 20
i3 - November/December 2019 - 21
i3 - November/December 2019 - 22
i3 - November/December 2019 - 23
i3 - November/December 2019 - 24
i3 - November/December 2019 - 25
i3 - November/December 2019 - 26
i3 - November/December 2019 - 27
i3 - November/December 2019 - 28
i3 - November/December 2019 - 29
i3 - November/December 2019 - 30
i3 - November/December 2019 - 31
i3 - November/December 2019 - 32
i3 - November/December 2019 - 33
i3 - November/December 2019 - 34
i3 - November/December 2019 - 35
i3 - November/December 2019 - 36
i3 - November/December 2019 - 37
i3 - November/December 2019 - 38
i3 - November/December 2019 - 39
i3 - November/December 2019 - 40
i3 - November/December 2019 - 41
i3 - November/December 2019 - 42
i3 - November/December 2019 - 43
i3 - November/December 2019 - 44
i3 - November/December 2019 - 45
i3 - November/December 2019 - 46
i3 - November/December 2019 - 47
i3 - November/December 2019 - 48
i3 - November/December 2019 - 49
i3 - November/December 2019 - 50
i3 - November/December 2019 - 51
i3 - November/December 2019 - 52
i3 - November/December 2019 - 53
i3 - November/December 2019 - 54
i3 - November/December 2019 - 55
i3 - November/December 2019 - 56
i3 - November/December 2019 - 57
i3 - November/December 2019 - 58
i3 - November/December 2019 - 59
i3 - November/December 2019 - 60
i3 - November/December 2019 - 61
i3 - November/December 2019 - 62
i3 - November/December 2019 - 63
i3 - November/December 2019 - 64
i3 - November/December 2019 - Cover3
i3 - November/December 2019 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20210304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20210102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20201112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20200910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20200708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20200506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20200304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20200102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20191112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20190910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20190708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20190506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20190304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20190102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20181112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20180910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20180708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20180506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20180304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20180102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20171112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20170910
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20170708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20160102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20160304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20160506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20160708
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20170506
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20170304
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20170102
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20161112
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/i3_20160910
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com