BSD Medical Corp. (NSDQ:BSDM) initiated its Phase I/II HyRec-Trial, evaluating its BSD-2000 Hyperthermia System to treat patients with locally recurrent rectal cancer.
The clinical trial, which has been approved by the German Cancer Society, will enroll 59 patients to evaluate the feasibility and the efficacy of adding hyperthermia to a multimodal treatment regimen, the company said.
Colorectal cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death in the U.S. and the 4th most common form of cancer worldwide, according to the press release.
The BSD-2000 Hyperthermia System delivers localized therapeutic heating in combination with chemotherapy and radiofrequency energy, BSD said.
Researchers said radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy and deep hyperthermia can improve response, local control and survival rates in certain patients with rectal cancer, 2 studies showed.
The multicenter study will be sponsored by the University of Erlangen Medical School and led by Dr. Oliver Ott, associate professor of the department of radiation oncology at Erlangen.
Salt Lake City-based BSD recently reported losses that widened by more than 50% during fiscal 2012, as sales decreased by nearly 32%.
