Robotics to aid early lung cancer detection at Englewood Health
Physicians at Englewood Health in New Jersey use Intuitive Surgical's Ion Endoluminal System to take tissue biopsies from the hard-to-reach outer third of the lung to identify early-stage lung cancer.
WHY IT MATTERS
Robotic bronchoscopy offers stability and greater precision than traditional bronchoscopy, said Dr. David Shiu, chief of pulmonary medicine at Englewood Health.
“With this technology, we can access lung lesions that were previously unreachable with standard bronchoscopy techniques,” he said in a statement on the health system's website.
The device's maneuverable catheter has an integrated vision probe that provides real-time visualization while navigating to the target.
According to Intuitive's website, the tool integrates Siemens Healthineers' Cios Spin mobile imaging system that provides 3D scanning to a touchscreen that surgeons can use during lung biopsies to refine navigation and verify the tool-in-lesion.
Englewood Health was the first hospital in New Jersey to introduce this robot-assisted spine surgerythe New Jersey business magazine reported last year.
THE BIG TREND
Robot-assisted surgery can improve patient outcomes, reduce the number of incisions and minimize tissue damage, which can result in less postoperative pain and a shorter hospital stay.
The technology can give surgeons better vision, precision and control, said Brian Miller, Intuitive's executive vice president and chief digital officer. Healthcare IT news earlier.
Robotics “enables a three-dimensional view of the procedure, the ability to use fluorescent technologies to see the surgical field in much more detail and the highly sensitive control of instruments to operate in tight spaces that traditional surgical instruments might not have,” he said .
The technology could even hasten a future where robotic telesurgery is possible – if high-speed fiber optic communications can ensure patient safety beyond the metaverse.
In October, a surgical team in Singapore performed a remote gastrectomy on a patient more than 3,000 miles away in Japan. Researchers from the recent telesurgery trial said the delay was minimal and within acceptable industry benchmarks.
Miller also noted that robot-assisted surgery generates surgical performance data that artificial intelligence and machine learning can use to improve efficiency and potentially outcomes through improved surgical training.
“There are moments in proceedings where choices have to be made quickly, and that is the boundary where the most interesting AI pieces develop,” he said.
Earlier this year, NVIDIA announced that Belgian urologists at Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Hospital used their real-time AI computer software, Holoscan, to remove a patient's kidney during robotic surgery. The platform provided an augmented reality overlay of patient anatomy from a CT scan to improve the use of robot-assisted surgery using Intuitive's tools.
ON THE RECORD
“We are entering a new era in the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer with the introduction of robot-assisted bronchoscopy,” says Dr. Christos Stavropoulos, director of thoracic oncology at The Lefcourt Family Cancer Treatment and Wellness Center and chief of thoracic surgery at Englewood. Health, in the story.
“This technology gives us unprecedented access to peripheral lung nodules, increasing our ability to detect and fight lung cancer at its earliest stages, ultimately giving our patients a better chance at a healthier future.”
Andrea Fox is editor-in-chief of Healthcare IT News.
Email: afox@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.