F. Stuart Foster
Biography
F. Stuart Foster’s pioneering development of micro-ultrasound technology has enabled powerful high-resolution noninvasive imaging to better understand disease development and aid in the evaluation of new therapeutic treatments. He adapted his early high-resolution ultrasound work regarding miniature intravascular imaging catheters based on single-element mechanically scanned ultrasound transducers to larger external array transducers that could image small animals with high ultrasound resolution never before achievable. The visualization of tissue microstructure and functional status allowed by micro-ultrasound has now found clinical applications in high-resolution prostate imaging, ocular imaging, dermatology, and guided neurosurgical interventions. Foster’s recent innovations include a photoacoustic system that combines the high resolution of ultrasound with the high tissue contrast provided by optical pulses.
An IEEE Fellow and an elected foreign member of the US National Academy of Engineering, Foster is currently a senior scientist with the Sunnybrook Research Institute and professor with the Department of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
