FLIm has been integrated into surgical procedures in a range of applications by our group; most notably in Head & Neck cancer and in Brain oncology research applications.
For Head & Neck cancer, surgical procedures of the oropharynx, which comprises base of tongue and tonsil anatomical sites, are challenging to access and thus requires the use of Transoral Robotic Surgical Platforms (TORS). FLIm was integrated into both TORS and non-TORS clinical workflows for surgical cancer resection procedures of the oropharynx and oral cavity (e.g., tongue, gingiva, floor of mouth) respectively; this integration facilitated the acquisition and visualization of data in correspondence with typical Head & Neck procedure surgical workflows. Custom-built probes with 3D printed grapser tabs were developed to integrate multimode fiberoptic probes with the TORS da Vinci SP platform, as well as Omniguide Surgical laser handpieces and Stryker endoscopes for non-TORS procedures.
For brain oncology research applications, FLIm was integrated into surgical microscopes for point-scanning assessments of brain tumors. For all applications, FLIm processing computer hardware was designed to augment FLIm data in real-time onto surgical videos in real-time acquired by the da Vinci SP, Stryker endoscope, or Pentero Neurosurgery Microscope.
Collaborators
Intuitive Surgical
Funding
NIH (National Institutes of Health): R01CA187427