Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, UMC Health System Cancer Initiative Expands Treatment Options

LUBBOCK, TX, UNITED STATES, September 22, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- When 41-year-old Juan Cruz was first presented with the idea of using the Edison System device for a histotripsy in early 2026, he had reservations.

But, after a little convincing from Tyler Mouw, M.D., chief of surgical oncology for Texas Tech Physicians, he was reassured.

“I didn't want to do it. I didn't want to do it at all. I didn't think it would work,” Cruz, a Lubbock resident, said.

Lubbock, Texas, is one of only two cities in the state with this technology, which eradicates certain cancers without surgery. The device, made by HistoSonics, uses high-frequency ultrasound to create bubbles within a live tumor, destroying diseased tissue without an incision.

The device was funded by Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center’s (TTUHSC) Rural Cancer Collaborative, which was established in 2025 to improve access to cancer care and treatment for patients west of Texas’ Interstate 35 and in Eastern New Mexico.

As of now, the Edison System is only approved to treat liver cancer, which is what Cruz was diagnosed with in January 2026. HistoSonics officials are currently seeking approval from the Food and Drug Administration to use the technology to treat kidney, prostate and other tumors –possibly as soon as 2027.

The Histotripsy procedure takes about two hours from preparation to completion, though the treatment itself only takes about 15 minutes. Some patients are even able to return home the same day, and there are usually few side effects. Cruz was the first person to undergo the treatment in Lubbock in April 2026, when TTUHSC and UMC acquired the machinery.

“This platform, being here in Lubbock and at TTUHSC and UMC, provides our patients an opportunity to receive treatment here at home,” Mouw said. “If you were to look at a map of other institutions that had a histotripsy platform, the nearest one would either be in, I believe Austin, Texas or Phoenix, Arizona.”

This is Cruz’s second bout with cancer, which his medical team believes spread from his initial diagnosis. In February of 2023, he was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer after he visited an emergency room with severe abdominal pain. His treatment required more than a dozen rounds of chemotherapy, seven radiation treatments and the removal of about eight inches of his colon.

“There might have been a longer road to recovery. So finally, we agreed on this histotripsy because there's more –– there's more Plan B, Plan C, versus after that there was no plan,” Cruz said. “It was just (going to be) a rougher road.”

That is why he was not initially on board with using the Edison System – he knew traditional cancer treatment methods could work.

“(The Edison System) allows us to be much more precise in determining how much normal liver is impacted,” Mouw said.

Using the system for a histotripsy also decreases the need for chemotherapy and reduces the risk of impacting nearby blood vessels, which was a major concern for Cruz because of where his liver tumor was.

“That night, Dr. Mouw – he’s a very good doctor – he texted me on his personal phone,” Cruz said. “I had a CT scan right after the Histotripsy. He texted me and said, ‘We’re going to look over it more, but as of right now, you know, you’re officially cancer-free.’”

Cruz ultimately found the procedure beneficial. He said that by the weekend after his operation, he was helping his brother work on his car.

Suzanna Cisneros
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
+1 806-773-4242
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Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and UMC Health System Cancer Initiative Expands Treatment Options Through New Technology