Why Robotic Bronchoscopy

Early detection of lung cancer can significantly improve outcomes. More than 70% of all lung cancer nodules are located in the outer one-third of the lung,⁶ an area full of tight spaces and narrow airways that may be hard to reach. These tight spaces have made it difficult for physicians to reliably access and biopsy suspicious nodules accurately. Ion, Intuitive’s innovative robotic bronchoscopy platform, is designed to overcome these challenges. By enabling minimally invasive biopsies in hard-to-reach areas, Ion offers physicians, and their patients, a new option for early diagnosis.

During a procedure using the Ion system, a physician will insert the Ion fully articulating catheter into the patient’s lung via the mouth and throat through an endotracheal tube, which has been shown to reduce the chance of complications associated with biopsy approaches that use a needle inserted from outside the body.^7,8

Ion’s ability to navigate to small nodules and enable precise⁹ biopsies may help patients with lung nodules get early answers, increasing the likelihood that treatment could be curative.

The lungs are constantly moving, creating a critical need for precision and control during bronchoscopic procedures. Ion’s pioneering use of shape-sensing technology helps physicians answer this need. Shape sensing provides real-time data about the catheter’s exact location, shape, and orientation throughout the navigation and biopsy process. Ion’s integration with real-time imaging further expands access to high-quality patient care by helping to account for CT-to-body divergence, which is a difference in the nodule location seen in static preprocedural CTs and intraprocedural imaging.¹⁰

Ion expands possibilities by advancing efficiencies across the lung care continuum with a comprehensive portfolio of solutions to support finding answers faster along a less invasive path to diagnosis.