New robotic platform applied sciences are serving to rework early lung most cancers diagnoses
Proven third from proper, Dr. Richard Lazzaro, Chief of Thoracic Surgical procedure for the RWJBarnabas Well being Southern Area, gathers with, third from left, President and CEO Eric Carney and members of the Ion crew, together with, from left, Lisa Garzone, NP-C, RNFA, thoracic surgeon Dr. Joseph Whitlark. Chelsea Convissar, PA-C, and Tracy Vasquez, Thoracic/Robotic Surgical Coordinator.
Lengthy Department, NJ, June 28, 2024 – Monmouth Medical Heart (MMC), an RWJBarnabas Well being facility, has launched three new superior extremely exact applied sciences used to each diagnose and deal with lung most cancers. RWJBarnabas Well being, along with Rutgers Most cancers Institute, the state’s solely Nationwide Most cancers Institute-designated Complete Most cancers Heart, brings essentially the most superior remedy choices near dwelling.
Monmouth Medical Heart was the second in New Jersey and the primary in central and southern New Jersey to introduce Ion, a robot-assisted platform designed to allow minimally invasive lung biopsies which will turn into a key a part of early analysis. The hospital not too long ago reached the milestone of its 100th Ion case and continues to develop the superior capabilities of its thoracic oncology program.
Dr. Richard Lazzaro — Chief of Thoracic Surgical procedure for the RWJBarnabas Well being Southern Area and a famend nationwide chief within the subject who has pioneered many groundbreaking firsts in robotic thoracic surgical procedure — describes this new robotic know-how as a game-changer in early detection of lung most cancers because it enhances attain, precision, and stability for lung biopsies and affords docs entry to all segments of the lung.
“Ion’s potential to navigate to small nodules and allow exact biopsies might help sufferers with suspicious lung nodules get solutions sooner, doubtlessly enabling extra time to think about remedy choices,” mentioned Dr. Lazzaro, a board-certified thoracic surgeon with greater than 30 years of specialised expertise in minimally invasive and robotic surgical procedure.
In keeping with Dr. Lazzaro, its distinctive design permits docs to navigate tiny bends and curves of the lung airways.
“If a affected person’s physician recommends a lung biopsy to look at an irregular development, the Ion robotic-assisted bronchoscopy is a minimally invasive choice that’s extremely exact, and permits us to rapidly present sufferers with the solutions they want following biopsy,” he mentioned. “Ion replaces typical bronchoscopy’s thick catheter and guide steerage with an ultrathin catheter, GPS-like navigation, and robotic help. This provides us a secure, steerable system that may even journey by way of tiny, winding airways within the lungs’ outer edges.”
Moreover, MMC is the primary hospital in New Jersey to supply new, minimally invasive know-how to ablate lung lesions referred to as the Aliya PEF System. Utilized along side the Ion robotic, the system delivers high-voltage, high-frequency electrical currents by way of a single monopolar electrode designed to ablate the focused most cancers cells.
Thoracic surgeon Dr. Joseph Whitlark, a member of the RWJBarnabas Well being Medical Group, carried out MMC’s first ablation utilizing the PEF System. The PEF vitality destabilizes the cells, leading to cell demise with out requiring thermal processes, whereas preserving the encompassing wholesome tissue.
“This modern approach is not like something we’ve seen, because it seems to stimulate the affected person’s personal immune system to activate in opposition to the tumor,” mentioned Dr. Whitlark. “Early medical research point out the potential for releasing antigens and immune system stimulation. We’re excited to be the primary hospital in New Jersey to supply this know-how.”
FDA accepted for the remedy of strong cancerous tumors, the Aliya system mixed with the Ion know-how provide sufferers the potential advantage of not needing to come back again to the working room for a second process, as analysis and remedy can in sure instances happen on the identical time.
Most not too long ago, the hospital turned the primary in New Jersey to introduce intraoperative AI-driven CT imaging to be used with the Ion. LungVision is a breakthrough innovation in lung most cancers analysis, in response to Dr. Benjamin Medina, a Rutgers Most cancers Institute thoracic surgeon who makes a speciality of thoracic surgical oncology.
“Intraoperative imaging has a profound affect on the power to efficiently diagnose sufferers, and this superior know-how enhances the robotic bronchoscopy platform with real-time imaging,” says Dr. Medina. “It’s the solely navigation system that’s not reliant on preoperative CT and advantages to sufferers embody much less radiation publicity and fewer time spent in surgical procedure.”
“We’re proud to have the ability to introduce these wonderful new applied sciences as part of our dedication to delivering the best stage of thoracic care to our sufferers,” mentioned Monmouth Medical Heart President and CEO Eric Carney. “In pioneering these firsts, our crew has a singular focus – that’s on the perfect affected person outcomes.”
Monmouth Medical Heart created the area’s first robotic surgical procedure program – and it stays one of many busiest robotic surgical procedure packages within the state.
For sufferers recognized with lung most cancers, the hospital’s built-in most cancers care mannequin in partnership with Rutgers Most cancers Institute, contains the state’s largest community of most cancers specialists. This crew emphasizes essentially the most complete, compassionate care together with a full panel dialogue at every level in remedy by way of weekly multidisciplinary thoracic oncology tumor board conferences, in addition to entry to essentially the most superior remedy choices and medical trials, a lot of that are solely accessible at NCI-designated most cancers facilities.
Study extra about MMC’s Lung Most cancers Program. To schedule an appointment with one in all our thoracic most cancers specialists name 844-CANCERNJ.
About Monmouth Medical Heart
Monmouth Medical Heart (MMC), an RWJBarnabas Well being facility, together with The Unterberg Kids’s Hospital, is a regional instructing campus for Rutgers-Robert Wooden Johnson Medical College. As the primary hospital in Monmouth and Ocean counties, MMC gives essentially the most skilled surgeons in robotics and different minimally invasive procedures in addition to bariatric and joint and backbone surgical procedure. MMC delivers extra infants yearly than all different hospitals in Monmouth and Ocean counties mixed. The hospital gives entry to the area’s high cardiologists and the award-winning, nationally acknowledged RWJBarnabas Coronary heart Facilities. The American Nurses Credentialing Heart (ANCC) has conferred Magnet® recognition for MMC, one in all simply 509 U.S. well being care organizations out of greater than 6,300 U.S. hospitals to realize Magnet recognition. MMC has acquired extra “A” Hospital Security Scores from The Leapfrog Group, an impartial nationwide nonprofit group, than another hospital within the area. The hospital has additionally been named a Leapfrog High Instructing Hospital 3 times. MMC is one in all simply 414 of the greater than 6,000 hospital hospitals within the U.S. named to Newsweek’s World Greatest Hospitals’ record for 3 consecutive years, and one in all 148 U.S. hospitals named to the digital platform Cash’s inaugural record of the Greatest Hospitals in America. Moreover, it’s one in all 34 U.S. hospitals honored by the Emergency Nurses Affiliation with the 2022–2025 Lantern Award for excellence in emergency care, and for the eighth consecutive 12 months, was honored by Healthgrades with the Obstetrics and Gynecology and Labor and Supply Excellence Awards. U.S. Information & World Report, the worldwide authority in hospital rankings and client recommendation, has acknowledged MMC among the many 2023-2024 Greatest Hospitals for Maternity Care, which identifies hospitals that present high-quality maternity look after uncomplicated pregnancies. RWJBarnabas Well being and MMC, in partnership with Rutgers Most cancers Institute— the state’s solely NCI-designated Complete Most cancers Heart — brings a world class crew of researchers and specialists to combat alongside sufferers, offering close-to-home entry to the newest remedy and medical trials.
