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University Hospitals Ahuja Medical Center introduces innovative Electromagnetic Navigation Bronchoscopy for pulmonary patients

Internal biopsy procedure diagnoses lung nodules more safely and accurately

Beachwood, Ohio – University Hospitals (UH) Ahuja Medical Center is offering a new, state-of-the-art procedure for diagnosing lung nodules which employs an electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy system called i-Logic™. The system gives pulmonologists at UH Ahuja Medical Center the ability to more accurately and safely diagnose nodules and provide leading-edge therapies to patients with lung cancer.

Many people in Northeast Ohio have lung nodules because of infections, occupational exposures, inflammation or cancer. The nodules are often very small, but they need to be assessed to ensure they are not malignant. “For decades, to accurately diagnose nodules we would perform a bronchoscopic lung biopsy using fluoroscopy that provides a two-dimensional view of the chest,” says Jonathan Castro, MD, FCCP, pulmonologist and critical care specialist at UH Ahuja Medical Center. “Electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy is much more precise.”

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The i-Logic system gives Dr. Castro and his team of acclaimed lung specialists at UH Ahuja Medical Center the ability to create a three-dimensional image of the lungs, and localize small nodules with GPS-like navigational accuracy. A lung mass or nodule can be precisely targeted and sampled to determine if it is cancerous. “With i-Logic, we can biopsy nodules that are very small, even a few millimeters in size, and which are frequently not visible or accessible with fluoroscopy-guided bronchoscopy,” says Dr. Castro.

The result is a safer and more accurate diagnostic technique. “From inside the airway, there is much less likelihood of injuring the surface of the lung and causing pneumothorax, or collapsed lung,” says Philip A. Linden, MD, FACS, FCCP, Division Chief of Thoracic and Esophageal Surgery, UH Case and Ahuja medical centers. “There is also a reduced chance of patients needing to be admitted after biopsy; they can almost always go home an hour after the procedure.”

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For patients who have severe emphysema and cannot tolerate lung surgery, UH Ahuja Medical Center’s electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy allows for safe and precise targeting of the cancer with stereotactic radiation, or Cyberknife®. For this treatment, the i-Logic system enables the placement of markers near the tumor. Surgeons and radiation oncologists can then precisely focus a beam of radiation on the tumor and avoid healthy lung tissue.

“The addition of the i-Logic biopsy system represents an exciting advancement in the diversity and quality of our pulmonary care,” says Susan V. Juris, President, UH Ahuja Medical Center. “We are pleased to offer the latest, most complete diagnostic lung navigation system available to patients in Cleveland’s eastern communities, close to where they live.”

This new procedure complements UH’s low-cost lung cancer screening program. Patients between the ages of 55 and 74 who have smoked at least a pack a day for 30 years or more may undergo lung screening on a spiral multi-slice CT. CT lung cancer screening can be likened to a mammogram for lung cancer and has the potential to do what mammography has done for breast cancer – make the disease more curable by detecting tumors at earlier stages.

To learn more about the full array of pulmonology care and screenings accessible at UH Ahuja Medical Center, call 216-593-5500 or visit www.uhahuja.org.
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