Although HIFU was recently approved in the US, there are a significant number of urologists throughout the United States that have already invested time and energy to become experts in HIFU for prostate disease. This week, we would like to introduce one of those physicians who originally started learning about HIFU nearly 10 years ago.

Dr. Michael Lazar, a Santa Rosa urologist and prostate cancer expert, is the only Northern California physician recognized as a leader in the use of high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) for prostate cancer. He has been successfully treating patients with Sonablate HIFU since 2007. In addition to serving as Medical Director to HIFU Prostate Services, Dr. Lazar was also one of only three urologists in the country that served as a proctor for Sonablate HIFU cases conducted as part of the clinical trial process for FDA clearance.

He has treated or been involved with over 200 patients and is also site director for SonaCare Medical’s international training site in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Dr. Lazar formed California HIFU in order to offer minimally invasive prostate cancer treatment to men with the Sonablate. He performs HIFU at San Francisco Surgery Center (SFSC) in downtown San Francisco, near Union Square. Dr. Lazar and his staff are proud to be early leaders in the usage of HIFU, a medical procedure that applies high intensity focused ultrasound energy to locally heat and destroy diseased or damaged tissue with prostate cancer through ablation. Dr. Lazar has worked tirelessly to bring this innovative service for prostate cancer treatment to patients in the United States. He was the first physician to complete a HIFU procedure on the West Coast that was not part of a clinical trial.

Michael J. Lazar, M.D. graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1978 and completed postgraduate training in surgery and urology at LSU in 1983. He is four-time board certified by the American Board of Urology and is Managing Physician Director of Santa Rosa Surgical Management Co., LLC, which manages Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital’s Ambulatory Surgery Center. He is also Chairman of the Board of Directors of Redwood Health Services and is a member of the American Urological Association.

Dr. Lazar is married with 3 children, and has been active in Boy Scout leadership and coaching soccer. His hobbies include hiking, backpacking, camping, alpine skiing, and the occasional fly-fishing outing. Dr. Lazar also enjoys living in the wine country, which affords cultivation of a love of wine, and proximity to San Francisco allows enjoyment of its theater and fine arts.

Get to know Dr. Lazar more over at his website, www.CaliforniaHIFU.com.

For more information about HIFU for prostate cancer please contact us or click HERE for frequently asked questions.