Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to expand the evidence base for the effectiveness of High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound in treating prostate cancer.

In June 2026 the Government announced that it would expand access to focal therapy, including high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) therapy, by investing up to £2.8 million. Access to focal therapies will be expanded in line with the expansion of TRANSFORM trial.

Focal therapies are still under research and assessment by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and are not currently a standard part of the prostate cancer treatment pathway. NICE’s guidelines recommend that HIFU should not be offered to people with localised or locally advanced prostate cancer, other than in the context of controlled clinical trials comparing their use with established interventions. Further information is available in the response to the Hon Member for Gosport of 12 June 2025, to Question 56192.