Veran Medical
Oct 23, 2017
October 23, 2017 –
Veran Medical’s SPiN Thoracic Navigation System™ utilizes an expiration based CT scan map for navigation that is shown to be significantly more accurate at predicting lung nodule location during diagnostic bronchoscopy procedures.
A newly published study using Veran Medical’s SPiN Thoracic Navigation System™ highlights the importance of using a more accurate CT scan map for navigated lung procedures. Physicians use navigation systems to help guide them through the lungs to diagnose and treat lung cancer. Lung cancer is by far the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide, and the key to stage-shifting cancer and saving lives is catching smaller nodules earlier and diagnosing them accurately. The study concludes that a map based on expiration CT scans is significantly more accurate at predicting actual nodule location vs. maps based on inspiration CT scans. The differences, the authors conclude, may account for discrepancies between a diagnosis and no diagnosis.
Only the SPiN Thoracic Navigation System™ creates navigation maps based on expiration scans.
The article titled “Comparing Pulmonary Nodule Location During Electromagnetic Bronchoscopy with Predicted Location Based on Two Virtual Airway Maps at Different Phases of Respiration” was published online in the prestigious CHEST Journal, the official publication of the American College of Chest Physicians.
The investigators from the Medical University of South Carolina looked at 20 pulmonary nodules in 18 consecutive patients to measure the distance between the predicted nodule location on an inspiratory and expiratory CT scan map, and this location was compared to the actual nodule location during bronchoscopy. When studying the predicted lung nodule location using an inspiration CT scan map, the authors found an average distance of 14.8mm between the predicted location and actual location. When studying the difference using the expiration CT scan map used by Veran’s SPiN System™, this error distance was significantly lower, with an average of 4.5mm. Furthermore, when utilizing Veran’s proprietary vPad™ technology for an automatic registration to the expiration CT scan map, the error distance decreased to 3.0mm.
“Veran’s mission is to stage-shift cancer and save lives. As lung cancer screening expands, doctors will continue to be challenged with diagnosing smaller and smaller suspicious nodules. This study confirms that Veran’s navigation technology starts with the foundation of a far more accurate map. As investigators have concluded, that accuracy is critical for helping doctors catch cancer earlier and guiding patients to therapy that can extend and save lives. The evidence is clear that lung nodules move during respiration and that an expiration based CT scan map more accurately predicts the true nodule location during procedures,” said Veran CEO Jason Pesterfield.
First generation Electromagnetic Navigation (EMN) Systems are limited by using inspiration CT scans for both pre-procedural planning and intra-procedural navigation. The authors stated that, “A meta-analysis of ENB studies, which were all using an INSP map, found a discrepancy between successful electromagnetic navigation to a PN (pulmonary nodule) and diagnostic yield, 97.4% and 64.9%, respectively. Eberhardt et al. found that ENB yields for lower lobe nodules were significantly lower than upper lobe nodules, (29% vs. 77%), suggesting that greater respiratory movement of nodules closer to the diaphragm may adversely affect EMN.” Unlike older navigation technology, Veran’s SPiN System™ was designed to navigate using an expiration scan and to track respiration throughout the entire procedure.
Investigators write that “The precision of any tracking system depends upon accurate information input and the results of this study suggest that an EXP map may better represent nodule location.”
Veran’s technology ensures physicians can confidently and accurately reach target nodules even if a patient coughs, moves, or simply breathes in and out during the procedure.
“Veran’s SPiN Thoracic Navigation System™ and SPiN Perc™ are transforming the physician’s ability to accurately access and diagnose hard to reach Solitary Pulmonary Nodules (SPNs) and to provide cost-effective care for the 2.7 million SPNs found annually in the US,” said Veran CEO Jason Pesterfield.
Veran is a privately held medical device company headquartered in St. Louis, MO. The company’s mission is to empower physicians to diagnose cancer earlier and to enable precision therapy to save lives. In the United States, lung cancer kills more people each year than breast, prostate, pancreatic and colon cancers combined.
Veran has developed and commercialized an FDA cleared, next generation electromagnetic thoracic navigation platform called the SPiN Thoracic Navigation System®. Veran’s breakthrough technology has been adopted by leading cancer centers throughout the United States. Veran provides physicians with a full line of bronchoscopic brushes, needles, forceps and steerable catheters with tiny electromagnetic sensors embedded in the tips for precise navigation. The combination of these proprietary Always-On Tip Tracked® instruments and Veran’s exclusive patient respiratory gating technology enables physicians to accurately access lung nodules by accounting for nodule movement during patient breathing, a common challenge for lung specialists.
Another challenge lung specialists face is that approximately 40% of lung nodules lie outside of an airway, making them very difficult to reach endobronchially, and traditionally requiring an additional procedure. Veran’s SPiN Thoracic Navigation System® is the first and only FDA cleared technology that enables Pulmonologists or Thoracic Surgeons to safely and accurately access lung nodules outside of an airway using SPiN Perc®, a navigated transthoracic needle. With SPiN Perc®, Veran combines endobronchial navigation with percutaneous navigation, allowing physicians to access all lung nodules in a single procedure, regardless of nodule size or location. This eliminates the cost and risk of unnecessary procedures and empowers physicians to provide a same day diagnosis for their patients. The early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer has been proven to save lives.