A new robotic surgery technique has the potential to improve the outcomes of cancer surgery

Scientists at National Robotarium, a partnership between Heriot-Watt University and Edinburgh University, industrial partners and Edinburgh clinicians are developing a new robotic surgery technique to improve cancer outcomes and patient care .

The groundbreaking method has won a £ 1.25 million award and is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, part of the UK Research and Innovation.

This will be used in robotic surgery to help decide how much of a patient's tissue is affected by neoplastic lesions and should be removed. The new method will provide surgeons with real-time feedback, which will allow greater precision in distinguishing normal from abnormal tissues.

The outer edge of the tissue that the surgeon decides to remove is known as the "Surgical margin". Currently, surgical margins are identified on the basis of the surgeon's experience, preoperative imaging (such as computed tomography) and, in the case of open surgery, "touch". Another method is to send samples during surgery to a pathology laboratory, which takes 15-20 minutes. However, when using minimally invasive techniques such as laparoscopic, endoscopic or robotic surgery, surgeons cannot use "touch" to identify tissue characteristics.

By combining engineering, clinical and industrial skills, the new collaboration will enable mechanical measurements within and around a surgical target to be interpreted using a set of algorithms. The data will provide clinicians with a clear indication of the tissue disease state and determine how much tissue needs to be removed during surgery.

The research team will work with industry partners IntelliPalp Dx and CMR Surgical and leading clinicians at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh.

The research is led by Dr. Yuhang Chen of the National Robotarium:

"Minimally invasive surgeons must identify different structures or areas with lesions, even if they look very similar. We want to create a tool that will allow to determine the optimal margin in oncological surgery to enable complete removal of cancer with minimal damage to healthy tissue. "

Source: Medical News