Researchers to Develop New Technology to Detect and Remove Cancer Tumors

AHA Publisher — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 07:00:21 +0000

University of Warwick via News-Medical – New technology that will marry probes that can detect cancer tumors through the skin with high-precision robotic surgery is to be developed for use in hospital settings for the first time in a project led by the University of Warwick. The Terabotics project will use probes that use terahertz radiation, or T-rays, to scan for tumors under the skin while medical-grade surgical robots will be adapted to use these scans to guide them in removing tumors in skin and colorectal cancer patients more precisely. If successful, the researchers hope it could lead to real-time diagnosis for cancer patients, shorter waiting periods for cancer surgery, and more comprehensive removal of tumors with reduced need for follow-up surgery. The project, which has received funding of £8 million from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, part of UK Research and Innovation, is a collaboration between the University of Warwick, University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire, University of Leeds and the University of Exeter. The five-year project starting in September 2021 aims to eventually trial the technology with patients attending cancer services at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Terabotics will use research from the University of Warwick into terahertz (THz) radiation, or T-rays, which sit in-between infrared and WiFi on the electromagnetic spectrum. Previous work from the University of Warwick’s Department of Physics has shown that these can be used to detect very subtle changes in the outermost layers of skin, and the technique has already been demonstrated on healthy volunteers. This will be the first time that it will be studied in patients within an active cancer process. As well as assessing how effective T-ray technology is in diagnosing cancers compared to standard care, the project aims to incorporate the technology into surgical robots to guide them more accurately when detecting tumors during colonoscopy and removing them during surgery. “What we will be testing is our hypothesis that we are able to detect a buried or hidden tumor. We think our terahertz probe will be able to detect those through looking at the transient response of the skin.” Emma Pickwell-MacPherson, Professor and Principal Investigator, Department of Physics, University of Warwick “Somebody might already be diagnosed with cancer but the actual extent of that cancer may not be known. For example, in skin cancer patients, the THz probe will image the visible tumor and the surrounding area to better determine the extent of the tumor that is beneath the surface. This will enable the whole tumor to be removed in one go, rather than incrementally. In turn, this enables better planning for reconstruction and speeds up the procedure.” Initially, the researchers will focus on adapting the T-ray probes to work with the surgical robots, miniaturisation of the technology and refining the design to provide more diagnostic parameters. Later stages of the project will involve trialling the technology with patients with a known or suspected cancer. Those attending cancer services at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire will be offered the opportunity to participate alongside their routine care. Colorectal cancer patients will be seen at the University of Leeds, where an endoscopic probe is being developed specifically to examine the colon. Just like our skin, the colon is an epithelial lining and could potentially be scanned by T-rays in the same way. At present, diagnosis of skin cancer relies upon a visual inspection by a clinician and a biopsy. There are over 150,000 new cases of skin cancer in the UK each year (1) and two to three million globally (2), numbers which are set to rise due to increased life expectancy. 1 in 15 UK males and 1 in 18 UK females will be diagnosed with bowel cancer in their lifetime and it is the second most common cause of cancer death in the UK. (2) Professor Joseph Hardwicke, Medical Lead for the project at University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire, said: “This technique is a way to examine the skin at a deeper and more technical level than what we are able to at the moment. The main hope, especially for skin cancer, is to determine the extent of the spread locally and also to potentially diagnose these cancers without the need for a biopsy in future. “This is a whole new area of diagnostics, like how MRI in the 1980s revolutionised medical imaging. I think this is a chance for terahertz combined with robotics to give us that greater accuracy. Even though we are still building evidence, there seems to be a lot of pieces of the jigsaw that make logical sense.” Professor Pickwell-MacPherson adds: “If we can give a quantitative answer using our technology that would be great, and ultimately that will speed up the throughput of patients. That in turn will reduce waiting times and costs, it will mean that the surgical procedures can be better planned and done more efficiently, the number of follow-up procedures can be reduced, then that has implications financially to the NHS. “This area is up and coming and terahertz robotics is becoming a hot topic. It has long been suggested that THz technology could be used for cancer detection and this project will push the technology forward to make it a reality. We hope that by demonstrating its application to skin and colon cancers we will open up the door to applying the technology to benefit other cancers too and transform cancer treatment protocols.” Professor Pietro Valdastri of the University of Leeds said: “Robotics is increasingly used in the operating theatre as it brings superior accuracy and unload some of the burden of the procedure from the surgeon. At Leeds, we are developing the next generation of surgical robots to detect colorectal cancer earlier and remove it more effectively. Adding THz perception capabilities to our robots is a new exciting avenue of research that has the potential to improve cancer patient quality of life in the next 5 to 10 years.” The project is among 20 innovative projects announced to revolutionise healthcare, improve treatments for millions of people with a wide range of conditions and save the NHS money. The projects are supported by £30.8 million of funding by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Four projects were co-funded by UKRI’s Medical Research Council (MRC). EPSRC Executive Chair Professor Dame Lynn Gladden said: “Technologies and approaches pioneered by UK researchers have the potential to revolutionise treatment for a wide range of conditions, from bowel cancer to diabetes. “The projects announced today exemplify this potential and may play a key role in improving the lives of millions of people.” To read the original article click here.

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New Discovery Allows 3D Printing of Sensors Directly on Expanding Organs

AHA Publisher — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 07:00:29 +0000

University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering via Newswise – In groundbreaking new research, mechanical engineers and computer scientists at the University of Minnesota have developed a 3D printing technique that uses motion capture technology, similar to that used in Hollywood movies, to print electronic sensors directly on organs that are expanding and contracting. The new 3D printing technique could have future applications in diagnosing and monitoring the lungs of patients with COVID-19. The research is published in Science Advances, a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The new research is the next generation of a 3D printing technique discovered two years ago by members of the team that allowed for printing of electronics directly on the skin of a hand that moved left to right or rotated. The new technique allows for even more sophisticated tracking to 3D print sensors on organs like the lungs or heart that change shape or distort due to expanding and contracting. “We are pushing the boundaries of 3D printing in new ways we never even imagined years ago,” said Michael McAlpine, a University of Minnesota mechanical engineering professor and senior researcher on the study. “3D printing on a moving object is difficult enough, but it was quite a challenge to find a way to print on a surface that was deforming as it expanded and contracted.” The researchers started in the lab with a balloon-like surface and a specialized 3D printer. They used motion capture tracking markers, much like those used in movies to create special effects, to help the 3D printer adapt its printing path to the expansion and contraction movements on the surface. The researchers then moved on to an animal lung in the lab that was artificially inflated. They were able to successfully print a soft hydrogel-based sensor directly on the surface. McAlpine said the technique could also possibly be used in the future to 3D print sensors on a pumping heart. “The broader idea behind this research, is that this is a big step forward to the goal of combining 3D printing technology with surgical robots,” said McAlpine, who holds the Kuhrmeyer Family Chair Professorship in the University of Minnesota Department of Mechanical Engineering. “In the future, 3D printing will not be just about printing but instead be part of a larger autonomous robotic system. This could be important for diseases like COVID-19 where health care providers are at risk when treating patients.” Other members of the research team included lead author Zhijie Zhu, a University of Minnesota mechanical engineering Ph.D. candidate, and Hyun Soo Park, an assistant professor in the University of Minnesota Department of Computer Science and Engineering. The research was supported by Medtronic (for sensor development) and the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number DP2EB020537. Additional support was provided by a University of Minnesota Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship awarded to Zhijie Zhu. To read the original article click here.

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Researchers to Develop New Technology to Detect and Remove Cancer Tumors

New Discovery Allows 3D Printing of Sensors Directly on Expanding Organs