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About Zhen
Zhen Xu is the Li Ka Shing Endowed Professor of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan, holding additional appointments as Professor of Radiology and Professor of Neurosurgery in the University of Michigan Medical School. She earned her M.S. in Biomedical Engineering in 2003 and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering in 2005 from the University of Michigan. Xu's research specializes in developing advanced ultrasound techniques for the treatment of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological disorders. She and her colleagues pioneered histotripsy, the first non-invasive, non-ionizing, and non-thermal ablation technique that employs controlled cavitation to mechanically liquefy targeted tissues. Her comprehensive efforts encompass fundamental mechanistic studies, therapeutic device development, preclinical validations, and clinical translation, resulting in ongoing clinical trials for histotripsy applications in both malignant and benign tumors, including FDA approval for liver tumor treatment in late 2023. This innovation has demonstrated capabilities to stimulate antitumor immune responses, enhance tumor antigen release, and improve survival outcomes in preclinical models of glioblastoma, melanoma, and other solid tumors.
Xu's distinguished career at the University of Michigan has been marked by exceptional recognition for her transformative contributions to biomedical engineering and therapeutic ultrasound. Notable honors include the Stephen S. Attwood Excellence in Engineering Award (2026), the Sony Women in Technology Award with Nature (2026), selection as one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential Health Leaders in the Innovators category (2026), election as an IEEE Fellow for advancements in non-invasive mechanical ultrasound ablation (2025), the IEEE Carl Hellmuth Hertz Ultrasonics Award for histotripsy invention and translation (2024), Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (2024), and Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering for histotripsy development (2019). Her influential publications feature seminal works on histotripsy, such as "Controlled ultrasound tissue erosion: The role of dynamic interaction between acoustic cavitation and mechanical stress" and recent studies including "First Report of Histotripsy-Induced Survival Benefit in Murine Glioblastomas" (Cancers, 2026), "Histotripsy-Focused Ultrasound Treatment Abrogates Tumor Hypoxia Responses and Stimulates Antitumor Immune Responses in Melanoma" (2025), and "Aberration correction expands the treatment envelope for histotripsy in the liver" (Physics in Medicine and Biology, 2025). With over 12,000 citations, Xu's scholarship profoundly shapes biomedical ultrasonics, image-guided therapy, and non-invasive oncology interventions.
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