Royal Philips has launched Azurion Lung Edition, an advanced 3D imaging and navigation platform to accelerate the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. The suite combines CT-like 3D images acquired at the tableside (cone-beam CT) with live x-ray guidance and advanced tools to support image-guided lung procedures. The system is designed specifically for bronchoscopy procedures, enabling clinicians to perform both minimally invasive endobronchial biopsies and lesion ablation during the same procedure.
Integrated and efficient, the Azurion platform optimizes clinical and operational lab performance and expands the role of image-guided interventions in the treatment of patients. Moreover, the platform has achieved rapid global adoption and has been used in well over 2 million procedures worldwide, Philips officials say.
“This is a very exciting time in the world of interventional pulmonology and advanced bronchoscopy,” says Michael Pritchett, MD, pulmonary and critical care physician, director, Chest Center of the Carolinas, FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital, Pinehurst Medical Clinic. “One of the things that we’re particularly excited about is being able to diagnose patients, stage their cancer and treat them, all in a single procedure. As a diagnostic bronchoscopist, it’s exciting and rewarding to be able not only to diagnose patients, but to go on to treat them as well.”
“Lung cancer is one of the most aggressive forms of cancer, and we need innovative technology to fight back,” adds Gustavo Cumbo-Nacheli, MD, director of bronchoscopy and interventional pulmonology at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids, Mich. “Without a cone-beam CT scan to confirm placement of the biopsy needle, repeat procedures are often necessary. And by combining cone-beam CT with other technologies, including robotics, we will be able to go beyond biopsy and treat the patient.”
Philips Azurion Lung Edition is currently available in the United States.
