Game-changing new breast cancer tech in Australian trials
A new technology developed in Australia is being labelled a breast cancer game-changer.
The concept probe originally developed by University of WA doctors and engineers has been 13 years in the making and changes how cancer cells are identified during surgery.
The concept probe was originally developed by University of WA doctors and engineers has been 13 years in the making. 9News
“Surgeons do not have any tools at their disposal that enable them to identify cancer remaining inside the patient at a microscale during surgery,” OncoRes Medical chief executive Dr Katharine Giles told 9News.
Hundreds of patients are already undergoing trials, with the hopes the new technology will be rolled out in hospitals across the country.
“Surgeons currently still rely on their sense of touch to figure out during surgery whether or not they’ve removed all the cancer,” Giles said.
“Instead of using their finger, surgeons will be able to use our probe inside the surgical cavity to identify tissue that’s suspicious and enable them to remove all of the cancer during the first surgery.
Breast is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in the country and this technology holds the potential to eliminate the need for patients to undergo a second surgery.
The new probe changes the way surgeons identify cancer cells during surgery. Here a lego display shows the surgical set up for the new probe. 9News
“Currently, 30 per cent of women will require a second surgery because when the pathologist analyses the specimen that’s been removed they see cancer too close to the edge,” Giles said.
Trials taking place in WA and are already proving positive.
The probe will then be rolled out for further testing in eastern states.
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