Monteris Medical presents new data from trials evaluating laser ablation for brain lesions

At the 2017 American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) Annual Scientific Meeting (held April 22-26 in Los Angeles, CA), Monteris Medical (Plymouth, MN) presented new data supporting the use of its NeuroBlate system for brain lesions. The system is indicated for use to ablate, necrotize, or coagulate soft tissue encountered in neurosurgery through application of laser thermotherapy.

Related: Third FDA-approved study supports additional potential use of laser ablation technology

At AANS 2017, Andrew Sloan, MD, FACS, professor and vice chair in the Department of Neurosurgery and director of the Brain Tumor & Neuro-Oncology Center at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center (Cleveland, OH), delivered an oral presentation titled "Laser Ablation in Stereotactic Neurosurgery (LAISE): A Multi-Institutional Retrospective Analysis of LITT for Glioma," which described the results of 97 patients whose lesions were ablated with the NeuroBlate system. Of the lesions analyzed, 48% were deep-seated, 57.8% were considered inoperable, and 1% were not suitable for chemotherapy.

Also presented by Sloan and his co-investigators was a poster—recognized among 1000 submissions with the Third Place Tumor e-Poster Award—titled "Laser Ablation in Stereotactic Neurosurgery (LAISE): A Multi-Institutional Retrospective Analysis of LITT for Brain Metastasis" describing results of 40 patients. These two presentations represent results from patients who had brain lesions ablated from 2011–2015 at nine U.S. centers.

"LITT is a minimally invasive tool used to ablate soft tissue and lesions in the brain that have historically been challenging to access," Sloan explains. "These encouraging findings from the LAISE study offer preliminary evidence that NeuroBlate may be a viable solution in individuals whose tumors were previously considered inoperable."

A separate prospective study, titled "Laser Ablation After Stereotactic Radiosurgery (LAASR) – Results of a Multi-Centered Prospective Study Stratified by Pathology," examined the use of laser ablation on patients' progressive brain lesions following prior stereotactic radiosurgery. Among 42 individuals receiving laser ablation between October 2012 and December 2015, 19 had biopsy-confirmed radiation necrosis, 20 had recurrent tumors, and three had no biopsy.

"Approximately 15% of patients with brain metastases initially treated with stereotactic radiosurgery will have clinically significant tumor regrowth or radiation necrosis within 18 months, which can ultimately lead to neurological deterioration," says Veronica L. Chiang, MD, associate professor of neurosurgery and of therapeutic radiology at the Yale School of Medicine and director of stereotactic radiosurgery and medical director of the Gamma Knife Center at Yale New Haven Hospital (all in New Haven, CT). "The findings of the LAASR study suggest that LITT has utility on these types of lesions and should be considered for appropriate patients."

Lastly, Dr. Clark Chen, director of stereotactic and radiosurgery and vice chairman of academic affairs at the University Of California San Diego Department Of Neurosurgery (San Diego, CA), presented two posters on data from Monteris Medical's prospective multi-center registry (LAANTERN). The posters titled "Laser Ablation of Abnormal Neurological Tissue using Robotic NeuroBlate System (LAANTERN): Procedural Safety and Hospitalization" and "Clinical Utilization of Stereotactic Laser Ablation (SLA): an Analysis of the Multi-center Prospective Registry, LAANTERN" provide initial data on the first 50 patients enrolled in this ongoing study.

For more information, please visit www.monteris.com.