On June 15–18, 2026, the city of Trondheim (Norway) hosted the anniversary 25th Annual International Symposium on Therapeutic Ultrasound (ISTU-2026). Organized by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, the Symposium brought together about 500 leading scientists, engineers, and clinicians from all over the world. A delegation from LIMU traditionally took an active part in the Symposium, presenting the latest results of our research.
The ISTU-2026 program covered a wide range of topics, spanning from fundamental ultrasound physics and numerical modeling to the clinical applications of thermal HIFU, histotripsy, targeted drug delivery, and neuromodulation. Presentations by LIMU team members attracted great interest and sparked lively discussions within the international community:
- LIMU Co-Head Dr. Vera Khokhlova gave a plenary lecture addressing the achievements of nonlinear acoustics in therapeutic ultrasound. Additionally, the Symposium featured an award ceremony honoring Vera Khokhlova with the prestigious William and Francis Fry Award (Fry Award) – ISTU highest honor recognizing outstanding contributions to the advancement of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU).
- Dr. Maria Karzova gave a talk on thermal ablation of biological tissues using focused ultrasound in both linear and shock-wave regimes.
- Dr. Ekaterina Ponomarchuk presented the results of the pilot experiments on fractionation of liver metastases of various origins using boiling histotripsy.
Events of great significance to our laboratory formed an important and touching part of the Symposium program. The conference marked the first in the ISTU history presentation of the “Excellence in Mentorship Award“. Its inaugural recipient was the distinguished American scientist, co-founder and one of the first presidents of ISTU, Professor Lawrence Crum. The award recognizes acknowledged leaders in the scientific community who, throughout their careers, have made immense contributions to the training, support, and professional development of new generations of researchers. It is particularly gratifying that Professor Crum shares deep historical ties with Moscow State University (MSU): he was named an Honorary Professor of MSU in 2002 and played an invaluable role in the establishment of the LIMU laboratory and in fostering the long-standing academic collaboration between MSU and the University of Washington.
In addition, a special Memorial Session was organized at the Symposium to honor the memory of the renowned Soviet and Russian scientist, Chief Researcher of the Andreyev Acoustics Institute, and key expert of LIMU Dr. Leonid Gavrilov. Dr. Gavrilov was one of the pioneers in the field of medical ultrasound, as well as a close friend, mentor, and long-time collaborator of our laboratory.
The Symposium provided an excellent opportunity not only to present the latest achievements of LIMU but also to honor the memory of our teachers, strengthen scientific ties with international colleagues, and outline future prospects for the new medical technologies being developed at LIMU.
