lcmh.com 17 The newest member to join the family of robotic-assisted technology at Lake Charles Memorial Health System is the Intuitive Ion endoluminal system. Peripheral lung biopsy can now be performed with robotic-assisted technology, utilizing the Intuitive Surgical Ion endoluminal system. This major medical advancement offers doctors unprecedented stability and precision, addressing a challenging aspect of lung biopsy by enabling physicians to obtain tissue samples from deep within the lung, thus detecting earlier stages of lung cancer. Pulmonologist with Lake Charles Memorial Health System Clifford Courville, MD, performed the first minimally invasive procedure in southwest Louisiana using the Ion on Nov. 4. He looks forward to this technology ushering in a new era of early-stage lung cancer diagnostics and the ability to treat local lung cancer patients sooner than ever before. Approximately 75% of lung cancers are diagnosed in an advanced stage. And around 70% of cancerous lung nodules are found in the outer third of the lung, an area that is challenging to reach and diagnose. During bronchoscopy with the Ion, the ultra-thin, easily maneuverable catheter can move 180 degrees in all directions, making a biopsy of a mass easier. The equipment allows doctors to navigate along a planned path through small and tortuous airways to reach nodules in any airway segment within the lung. The robot’s flexible biopsy needle can also pass through very tight bends via the catheter to collect tissue, enabling a more precise biopsy and easier experience for patients. Newage of lung cancer diagnostics “The Ion gives me the ability to navigate the natural airways of the lung, with a lower risk of puncturing the lung tissue,” Dr. Courville says. “It’s a safer way to approach the lesions that are in the periphery of the lung for patients who have fairly advanced underlying lung disease.” Typically if a physician finds a suspicious spot on the lung, commonly called a small mass or nodule, he or she may recommend that it be checked out further. This test is called a lung biopsy. Biopsy involves obtaining a tissue sample from the suspicious area and examining the cells under a microscope to determine if cancer or another disease is present. There are a number of ways to obtain tissue for biopsy. The biopsy approach your doctor will recommend depends on the size of the nodule, the location within the lung and your overall health. Fewer than 5% of nodules are actually cancer, but your doctor may recommend this to make sure. Prior to this advancement, the preferred method to reach an abnormal spot in the lung was to use a live CT scan image and a needle, entering the chest wall and lung from outside the body. This method presented a relatively high risk of injury to the lung tissue, potentially causing the lung to collapse for patients who had advanced lung disease. Currently LCMHS is the fifth site in the state and the only hospital in southwest Louisiana that offers this advanced technology. Ion is built on more than two decades of leadership in robotic-assisted technology by Intuitive, the maker of the da Vinci surgical system. The Ion endoluminal system allows for more precision, more reach, more stability— and more answers. Ion robot revolutionizes care for lung cancer
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzIxMDA=