Boston Scientific’s Visual ICE Cryoablation System Receives FDA Clearance for Bone Metastasis

August 24, 2023—Boston Scientific Corporation announced today that its Visual ICE cryoablation system has received FDA 501(k) clearance for an expanded indication. The new indication expansion grants this device to be used in the treatment of pain associated with tumors that have metastasized to bone in patients who are unable to receive or have not received relief from standard radiation therapy.

As stated in the press release, this indication adds to the wide range of uses for the Visual ICE system and cryoablation needles, including kidney, liver and lung tissue, prostate cancer, liver metastases, cryoanalgesia, and breast fibroadenomas. The company also noted that cryoablation can offer rapid and durable pain relief for patients who have been taking opioids and nonopioid analgesics or have undergone radiation therapy but still experience severe pain.

“Thanks to advancements in cancer treatments, people with cancer are living longer, but that can also mean that many patients living with late-stage cancer may also experience painful bone metastasis,” said Peter Pattison, who is President, Interventional Oncology & Embolization at Boston Scientific. “As the only company to hold this on-label indication for cryoablation, I’m proud that we can help improve quality of life for these patients.”