‘Pen’ enables surgeons to quickly pinpoint cancerous tissue
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Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have developed a handheld device, known as the MasSpec Pen, designed to distinguish between cancerous and healthy tissue within seconds while in the operating room, according to a press release.
“Effective surgeries are those that remove the most cancer, but also preserve the most normal surrounding tissue,” Livia Schiavinato Eberlin, PhD, assistant professor in the departments of chemistry, oncology and diagnostic medicine at The University of Texas at Austin, said in the release. “We created the MasSpec Pen because we thought it would be incredible if there was a technology that could actually provide molecular information right in the operating room in living tissues within a time frame that could expedite surgical decisions.”
A study is underway to examine use of the device during surgery for thyroid, breast and pancreatic cancers.
HemOnc Today spoke with Eberlin about the device, the research conducted thus far and what subsequent research will entail.
Question: What prompted the development of the device?
Answer : A device that could be used directly by surgeons and pathologists, without complications and the complexity of some systems we have in place, was lacking in this space. I started to think a few years ago about how we could adapt mass spectrometry technology in a way that would be easier to use, biocompatible and disposable.
Q: How did you conduct the study in human surgeries?
A: We have so far tested more than 1,000 human tissues in my lab. These were from biopsies gathered during surgery. About 1 year ago, we moved to the surgical room. Since then, we have done more than 100 surgeries and it has been very exciting. The main focus of our current study is to test the feasibility of the device — does it work in the living body, does it work on fresh tissue and how does it adapt to the clinical workflow?
Q: Can you elaborate on your findings?
A: So far, the device has been successful and we have had no complications. We plan to move to other clinical sites to continue testing and validate the device. We have tested the device mainly in breast, thyroid and pancreatic surgery, and we have been trying to gather as many patients as we can in each category. We hope to have a large enough number of patients soon so that we can share the results.
Q: Are there any challenges that must be overcome before the device is used in practice ?
A: Yes, absolutely. One of the challenges is validating our classifiers in tissues within the human body even before the tissue is removed from the patient. We are putting a lot of effort into this now. We are also working through technical refinements to create a device that can be used by several different institutions. What is important is to show its effectiveness and how this technology could change clinical practice and care for our patients.
Q: Is there anything else that you would like to mention?
A: This is a collaborative project between my lab and Texas Medical Center. It is exciting to work across disciplines toward the development of technology that can help many patients in clinical care. – by Jennifer Southall
For more information:
Livia Schiavinato Eberlin, PhD , can be reached at The University of Texas at Austin, 110 Inner Campus Drive, Austin, TX 78705; email: liviase@utexas.edu.
Disclosure : Eberlin is a co-inventor in patent applications submitted by The University of Texas at Austin related to the MasSpec Pen technology.