New technology in ovarian cancer surgery

The first surgery with the aid of fluorescent orientation for ovarian cancer patients.Scientists from Purdue University conducted this study using a 'control device' cancer cell and described in detail the pathogens.

Surgery is one of 10 steps taken, as part of the first phase of a clinical trial, to assess the effectiveness of a new technology in supporting medical staff, helping to eliminate Malignant cells of ovarian cancer patients. This new method will illuminate cancer cells to help surgeons identify and remove smaller tumors that in many cases are often overlooked because they are not observed.

Philip Low, a professor of Chemistry at Purdue University, who invented the technology, said surgeons were able to see pre-cancerous clusters of malignant cells that were as small as 1/10 mm, While so far, with the current equipment, scientists can only identify cancer cell clusters with average size of 3mm or more.

"Ovarian cancer is a very difficult disease to detect, and this new technique allows surgeons to detect tumors 30 times smaller than current standard techniques," said Low. "By significantly improving the detection of cancer cells by using fluorescent light, which can eliminate cancer cells is a significant step forward , " he added.

This research brings hope to thousands of women who are right
fight ovarian cancer. (Source: medicalexpress.com)

This technique will attach a fluorescence imaging agent to a modified form that folic acid acts as a "navigational device" to find and attach to ovarian cancer cells. The patient was injected with this substance 2 hours before the surgery with the supervision of a special camera system, called a fluorescence spectrometer, which then illuminated the cancer cells and displayed the taste. position on a flat-screen monitor placed next to the patient during surgery.

The surgeons involved in this study reported the following results. When using this technique, an average of 34 tumors could be detected, while compared to the traditional method, only 7 tumors were detected using the visual observation method.

The research results as well as the details of the experiment were published in the American Journal of Natural Medicine and Pharmacy on September 18.

Gooitzen van Dam, a professor and surgeon from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, where surgeries have been carried out, said the imaging system is very suitable for surgeries. The current.

'The system is very easy to use and is particularly suitable in open and endoscopic surgery , surgical procedures are and will be popular in the future ,' said Van Dam, Professor of Optical Imaging Center. Cancer of the University of Groningen, Netherlands, once again confirmed the role of this new method.

"I think this technology will be a revolution in surgery. I realize it may become a new standard in cancer surgery in a very short time here," he added. .

Research shows that the fewer cancer tissues, the easier it is for chemotherapy or immunotherapy, to help achieve greater efficacy, Low said.

By focusing on the elimination of malignant cells, Low has significantly reduced the amount of time it takes to perform clinical trials to complete this new study.

"What we are really interested in is providing the best effect for patients, but if we change the design of clinical trials to assess the impact of the surgical procedure using fluorescence. Control, we will have to monitor patients for years , " he said. "By replacing the assessment if we can identify and eliminate more malignant cells with the help of fluorescence imaging, we can quantify the impact of this new method within "Two hours after surgery. We hope this will allow this technology to be used on a large scale in the near future."

Low and his team are arranging to work with Mayo Hospital for the next phase of the clinical trial.