New data demonstrates clinical efficacy of NeuroBlate laser ablation for brain tumors
Monteris Medical (Plymouth, MI) has new data demonstrating that newly diagnosed brain tumor patients undergoing procedures with the NeuroBlate minimally invasive robotic laser thermotherapy tool experienced improved outcomes. These findings, along with a separate case study presentation highlighting the first successful ablation of the hippocampus and amygdala using a directional laser, were presented during the 2015 Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) Annual Scientific Meeting, taking place Sept. 26-30, 2015, in New Orleans, LA.
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In the first study, a multicenter review, investigators collected data from 22 patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) tumors who underwent a procedure with the NeuroBlate system and who had not received prior radiation or chemotherapy. Extent of ablation was defined by software as blue (43°C for 10 minutes) or yellow (43°C for two minutes) thermal-damage threshold (TDT) lines. Volumetric analysis was performed to determine the extent-of-coverage (EOC) by TDT lines. EOC for yellow and blue TDT-lines was 94% and 91%, respectively. Median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were 14.7 (range 2.7-44.2) and 5.4 months (range 3.4-9.2), respectively. Regression analysis for OS was significant for EOC by yellow and blue TDT-lines (p=0.04 for each), age (p=0.02) and pre-operative Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS—a standardized method of measuring the ability of brain tumor patients to perform ordinary tasks; p=0.04). Additional analysis demonstrated that EOC by blue TDT-line was still significant for OS when compared with age (p=0.007) and had a very good trend (p=0.08) vs. KPS. Of note, EOC by yellow TDT-line was the only significant factor for PFS (0.047).
Also, as part of the CNS scientific program, investigators from Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN) presented a case study highlighting their first successful ablation of the hippocampus and amygdala using the NeuroBlate SideFire directional laser. Joseph Neimat, MD, study author and associate professor of neurological surgery, notes that the laser enabled contouring in the hippocampus and amygdala, regions that would otherwise be difficult to ablate. The findings, while preliminary, could allow for maximally precise, minimally invasive lesioning of targets in the brain, including tumors, seizure foci, and low-flow vascular lesions, he says.
For more information, please visit www.monteris.com.
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