Sometimes the right combination of skill and technology can save a person's life. For example, earlier this year, a middle-aged man was referred to Bruce D. Pendleton, M.D., a neurosurgeon at St. Mary's Regional Medical Center, for removal of a brain tumor.
"He was really worried, since this was his second tumor. He had a larger lesion removed several years earlier," recalls Dr. Pendleton, adding it is not uncommon for brain tumors to return.
"After looking at his films, I thought the lesion was in the same location as before; but this one was much smaller … less than a centimeter." Dr. Pendleton says this was one case for which he was very glad to have access to a StealthStation®.
Advantages of the StealthStation®
The StealthStation® treatment guidance system takes images from a variety of traditional imaging sources -- X-ray, computerized tomography (CT) scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound -- and transforms them into an exact, 3-D view inside the body. The doctor can use it to plan and perform surgery. This also lets the surgeon map the safest, least invasive path to the target site.
"Before the StealthStation®, I would have approached the tumor from the same location as the previous craniotomy," Dr. Pendleton says. "But the StealthStation® showed me that the new tumor was actually in a different location than before -- about a centimeter away. It also showed me the most optimal path to that tumor was different than the site of the prior surgery."
Advanced software adds precision
Also aiding Dr. Pendleton in the surgery was some advanced software St. Mary's recently purchased. It makes the system even more precise by combining preoperative images with the position of the patient's head. Merging scanned images with live data gives surgeons a 3-D, realtime image of the procedure in progress.
"This is especially valuable when you are dealing with a very small tumor or if you are doing a needle biopsy, because it directs you right to the lesion," says Dr. Pendleton. A computer screen allows Dr. Pendleton to choose the exact 3-D view he needs to see.
Images of the surgical instruments also are rendered in the 3-D view. This allows him to see the exact location of his instruments on the monitor. Tracking instruments during surgery, including their positions and the angles at which they are entering the body, helps surgeons avoid harming nearby muscle, tissue, nerves or blood vessels. "This is especially important when you are working near delicate organs such as the optic nerve or the carotid artery," says Dr. Pendleton.
With the help of the StealthStation®, Dr. Pendleton was able to remove the patient's tumor using a smaller incision. It also shortened the time it took to perform the operation.
"Without the StealthStation®, I would have opened him up, looked around and probably not have found the tumor. But this device directed me right to it," Dr. Pendleton says. "It really helped me provide a much better outcome for the patient."
