August 22, 2018

World’s first-in-human augmented reality tumor ablation completed at the Cleveland Clinic.

MediView XR, LLC, today announced the successful first-in-human use of its intraoperative Real-Time, Fused Holographic Visualization (RTFHV) Extended Reality Surgical Navigation Platform for a liver tumor ablation procedure. MediView is an Ohio-based medical device startup company focused on launching a stand-alone Extended Reality Surgical Navigation Platform to accurately target, navigate, biopsy and ablate cancerous lesions.

“To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time globally that extended reality surgical navigation has been evaluated intraoperatively in a human liver tumor ablation procedure, which is a significant milestone in the realm of extended reality guided surgery.” said Karl West, M.S., Inventor of the Technology and Director of Medical Device Solutions at Cleveland Clinic’s Lerner Research Institute.

The Extended Reality assisted liver tumor ablation procedure was completed by Dr. Charles Martin III, M.D., Director of Interventional Oncology at the Cleveland Clinic, as part of the safety and feasibility trial for the technology (Intra-procedural 360-degree Display for Performing Percutaneous Liver Tumor Ablation – clinicaltrials.gov).

“MediView’s RTFHV Extended Reality surgical navigation system achieved proof-of-concept in a highly complex soft-tissue percutaneous liver tumor ablation procedure,” said Dr. Martin. “This revolutionary medical imaging technology has the potential to redefine the cancer care continuum.”

Unlike standard procedural images that are displayed on a conventional 2D display screen, MediView’s RTFHV system projects 3D holograms of patient-specific internal anatomy in real-time onto the patient during the procedure.  Each patient’s personal images are aligned with their anatomical structures through a proprietary registration process.

MediView’s technology is designed to permit surgeons to look directly at a patient, see beneath their skin, and peer into their internal anatomy during a procedure.  Before the procedure the precise path of the biopsy needle and probe to treat the cancer can be plotted out. During the procedure the physician then uses the head mounted display to see the patient’s internal anatomical structures with the plotted trajectory of their surgical tools.  Throughout the procedure the surgical tools are tracked to the targeted anatomy with mini-GPS-like navigation.

“The potential benefits of extended reality assisted surgical procedures are tremendous.  Existing surgical imaging modalities have limitations that reduce their effectiveness in percutaneous procedures and expose medical professionals to risks associated with radiation exposure, which MediView’s technology is specifically designed to overcome” said John W. Black, CEO and Co-Founder of MediView. “We are excited to partner with the lab at Cleveland Clinic’s Lerner Research Institute to design, test and refine this technology.”