TriStar Centennial First to Offer Lung Cancer Detection Technology

A new innovation that holds promise to fight lung cancer is now in use at TriStar Centennial Medical Center. Used to view the inside of the lungs and obtain a tissue sample for biopsy, the goal of Auris Health’s Monarch™ Platform is to enable earlier and more-accurate diagnosis of small and hard-to-reach nodules in the periphery of the lung.

The technology integrates the latest advancements in robotics, software, data science, and endoscopy (the use of small cameras and tools to enter the body through its natural openings). TriStar Centennial is first in the state of Tennessee and among the first hospitals in the United States to utilize the platform, which was recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide, in part because it has no symptoms in its early stages. Because the Monarch Platform provides improved reach, vision and control for bronchoscopic procedures, it holds potential to help to diagnosis cancer even earlier than before,” said Susan Garwood, M.D., Pulmonary and Advanced Bronchoscopy Lung Cancer Specialist with TriStar Medical Group Centennial Thoracic Surgical Associates at TriStar Centennial Medical Center. “I am excited about the promise of this technology to offer a more hopeful future for patients diagnosed with lung cancer.”

More than 80 percent of people diagnosed with lung cancer do not survive the disease, in part because it is often found at an advanced stage. There are a variety of diagnostic options currently available for lung cancer, but many have limitations in accuracy, safety, or are more invasive. These limitations can in some cases cause false positives, false negatives, or side effects such as pneumothorax (collapsed lung) and hemorrhage, which may unnecessarily extend hospital stays.

The Monarch Platform utilizes a familiar controller-like interface that physicians use to navigate the flexible robotic endoscope to the periphery of the lung with improved reach, vision, and control. Combining traditional endoscopic views into the lung with computer-assisted navigation based on 3-D models of the patient’s own lung anatomy, the Monarch Platform provides physicians with continuous bronchoscope vision throughout the entire procedure.

For more information about lung cancer screenings, detection and treatment options, visit TriStarCentennial.com. To determine if you are a candidate for a lung cancer screening and to schedule an appointment with a lung cancer specialist, call TriStar Medical Group Centennial Thoracic Surgical Associates at 615-342-7345.