May 8 2014
Monteris Medical announced that their novel magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guided laser technology, the NeuroBlate System, was recently applied by neurosurgeons at UC San Diego Health System to a malignant tumor deep inside a patient’s brain. This is the first time that this FDA-cleared laser ablation device has been used in California.
“The patient’s brain tumor was located in the thalamus. Normally, to access a tumor in this region, the surgeon would have to remove considerable healthy brain tissue, thus subjecting the patient to significant neurologic injury,” said neurosurgeon Clark C. Chen, MD, PhD, vice chairman of research, UC San Diego Division of Neurosurgery. “Our goal with this type of MRI-guided laser technology is to preserve healthy brain tissues while accessing tumors that would otherwise be inoperable.”
Chen and his team used a technique called laser interstitial thermal therapy. The procedure is performed inside an MRI machine while the patient is under general anesthesia. A dime-size hole was created in the patient’s skull to access the tumor. The NeuroBlate laser probe was inserted into the tumor under real-time MRI monitoring and computer guidance. When the tumor was reached, the laser beam was activated to heat tumor cells to a lethal temperature.
“We are encouraged by the reception our NeuroBlate System technology has received in the US and Canada, including the newest site in California,” CEO John Schellhorn remarked. “Our corporate mission is to provide brain surgeons one additional tool to use in the fight against invasive brain disease. We feel the NeuroBlate System’s ability to ablate a large 3-D contoured volume while providing the neurosurgeon real time feedback on what has been heated to a lethal temperature offers a new paradigm for ablation evaluation.”
About Monteris® Medical
Monteris Medical is a privately held company developing innovative MRI-guided, laser-based brain lesion therapy. Monteris Medical markets the NeuroBlate® System, a neurosurgical ablation device providing controlled therapy for difficult-to-treat brain lesions. Monteris also offers the AXiiiS® Stereotactic Miniframe; a single use platform for image-guided, stereotactic brain biopsy; and the AtamA™ Stabilization System for MRI-guided neurosurgical procedures requiring head fixation. www.monteris.com