Lung cancer is the most deadly cancer for U.S. patients, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The disease kills about 160,000 Americans each year.
The disease is so deadly because it often goes undetected in the early stages. Think about it: if you're breathing cigarette smoke into the deepest segments of your airway, and cancer develops there, then you won't notice until it's too late. The American Lung Association says that by the time patients begin to notice lung cancer symptoms, the cancer has usually spread to other parts of the body.
Veran Medical Technologies released its SPiN Drive system in 2009. SPiN Drive is an electromagnetic navigation platform that allows doctors to take lung tissue samples. Veran's proprietary Always On navigation technology utilizes electromagnetic sensors to help physicians navigate instruments within the branches of a patient's airway.
Doctors start by taking a CT scan of a patient's lung tissue, which Veran's SPiN Drive 2.0 software uses to create a road map of the patient's airway. Then, the road map is used to direct Always On-Tip instruments equipped with electromagnetic sensors to navigate to the suspected cancer lesion and take a biopsy of the tissue.
The software also utilizes 4D imaging to help doctors to navigate. 4D imaging shows not only the tumor but also the tumor's movement and the movement of the lung, which helps doctors to compensate for movement caused by the patient's breathing. 4D registration keeps the SPiN Drive moving accurately even deep within the lung's peripheral tissue.
Within the past year, Veran has invested $250,000 to develop the SPiN Drive 2.0 software in-house. The company has added 10 additional staffers and has built a training center to teach physicians how to use SPiN Drive.
The American Lung Association says that 80 percent of lung cancers could be prevented by not smoking or by smoking cessation. Exposure to particle pollution, hazardous chemicals and radon can also increase a person's risk of developing lung cancer.
Edited by
Alisen Downey
