Saint Marys Hospital Using Innovative Technology to Enhance Lung Cancer Screening and Diagnosis

WATERBURY, Conn. -- An innovation that holds promise to detect lung cancer in its early stages is now in use at Saint Mary’s Hospital. The goal of the technology is to provide visualization and access to small and hard-to-reach nodules in the periphery of the lung. The MONARCH™ Platform aims to help physicians achieve more accurate diagnoses of lung nodules which means patients can begin treatment earlier. The technology integrates the latest advancements in robotics, software, data science, and endoscopy.

“Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide, in part because it has no symptoms in its early stages. Since the technology provides advanced reach, vision, and control for bronchoscopic procedures, it holds the potential to help us to make a diagnosis earlier,” said Stefan Kachala, M.D., FACS, Chief of Thoracic Surgery at Saint Mary’s Hospital. “We are excited about the promise of this technology to offer a more hopeful future for our patients with lung cancer.”

Nearly 80 percent of people diagnosed with lung cancer do not survive the disease, in part because it is often found at an advanced stage. ¹ There are a variety of diagnostic options currently available for lung cancer, but many have limitations in accuracy, safety, or invasiveness. These limitations can lead to false positives, false negatives, or side effects such as pneumothorax (collapsed lung) and hemorrhage, which may extend hospital stays and increase health care costs. ²

Saint Mary’s new MONARCH™ robot utilizes a familiar controller-like interface that Dr. Kachala uses to navigate the flexible robotic endoscope to the periphery of the lung with advanced reach, vision, and control. Combining traditional endoscopic views into the lung with computer-assisted navigation based on 3-D models of the patient’s own lung anatomy, the technology provides physicians with continuous bronchoscope vision throughout the entire procedure, leading to better outcomes.

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^{2. Park HJ, Lee SH, Chang YS. Recent advances in diagnostic technologies in lung cancer. Korean J Intern Med. 2020;35(2):257-268. doi:10.3904/kjim.2020.030}