Why Robotic Bronchoscopy? | Ion by Intuitive

Address a leading cause of cancer mortality

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide.¹

In the UK, lung cancer is the third most common cancer, making up 13% of all new cancer cases each year.²
Approximately 50,000 new cases are diagnosed in the UK yearly.²
In Europe, it has a low five-year survival rate of 13%² because it is often diagnosed late. Fifty to 70% of cases are found at stage 4, compared to 15-25% at the early stage 1.³

Timeline showing the evolution of bronchoscopy methods

Early detection of lung cancer can significantly improve outcomes

More than 70% of all lung cancer nodules are located in the outer one-third of the lung⁴ an area full of tight spaces and narrow airways that may be hard to reach. For those patients, doctors haven't had a first-choice technology to turn to. Enter Ion, Intuitive’s innovative robotic-assisted platform that aims to enable minimally invasive biopsies that could become a key part of early diagnosis.

Learn about Ion

Intuitive Executive’s Perspective: Our commitment to the lung space

Charlie Dean, vice president of strategic supply execution, shares his perspective on Ion and our commitment to lung care.

Dec 26, 2024 | 00:04:32

Intuitive Executive’s Perspective: Our commitment to the lung space

Charlie Dean, vice president of strategic supply execution, shares his perspective on Ion and our commitment to lung care.

Dec 26, 2024 | 00:04:32
A Race to Catch Lung Cancer, Documentary Video About Early Lung Cancer Detection

Documentary video about Drs. Pritchett and Herrera and the race to biopsy lung nodules for suspected lung cancer to address lung care earlier.

Dec 26, 2024 | 00:06:21
Advancing Possibilities in Lung Care

Pulmonologist Ali Jiwani, MD talks about Ion and his early experience biopsying a small lung nodule in a patient.

Dec 26, 2024 | 00:01:15

Patient undergoing robotic bronchoscopy with Ion

Helping lung patients get answers

Technology that provides a high diagnostic yield, like Ion, is crucial for early answers in lung cancer patients.

A recent preliminary abstract from a multicenter study evaluated the integration of our Ion robotic bronchoscopy system with Siemens Healthineers’ Cios Spin mobile cone-beam CT. The study showed a 91% diagnostic yield under intermediate definitions and 89% strict definitions. There were no pneumothoraces of any kind in the 155 patients enrolled.⁵ The statistics below reflect preliminary study results.

Abstract presented at the 2024 American Association for Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology (AABIP) conference.

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91% and 89%+

Diagnostic yield (intermediate and strict definitions)

0%+

Pneumothoraces of any kind

14 mm

Median nodule diameter

26.5%+

Nodules with bronchus sign present

Research on Ion navigational bronchoscopy

Explore additional research and evidence about Ion robotic bronchoscopy—Outcomes, experiences, and techniques from some of the early adopters of the Ion technology.

Robotic navigational bronchoscopy in a thoracic surgery

A single-center study included 407 patients with 503 lung nodules (median size: 21 mm). 24.4% of the nodules had a bronchus sign. This study assessed the diagnostic success and clinical outcomes in a large multisurgeon cohort using radial probe endobronchial ultrasound (R-EBUS) and 2D fluoroscopy.

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Robotic-assisted bronchoscopy vs. CT-guided biopsy

A multicenter review of 225 patients compared robotic-assisted bronchoscopy (RAB) with Ion and CT-guided transthoracic biopsy (CTTB) to evaluate lung nodules. Both methods had similar diagnostic yield, but CTTB had a significantly higher complication rate.

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Radiation dose of cone beam CT with robotic bronchoscopy

A single-center study of 241 patients who underwent Ion robotic-assisted bronchoscopy with fixed cone beam CT (CBCT). The study looked at technical factors and clinical outcomes of combining CBCT with the Ion system.

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The ATLAS Study: Comparing bronchoscopic navigation platforms

A comparison study of three software platforms. Each create virtual airway maps to reach a target lesion. It examined differences in segmentation capabilities between planning software for electromagnetic navigation platforms and Ion PlanPoint.

See the study

Updates from the PRECIsE Study: Robotic-assisted bronchoscopy

A multicenter, prospective study including 365 patients who had Ion robotic-assisted bronchoscopy with 2D fluoroscopy. This abstract covers the group in the performance stage, focusing on procedural outcomes like diagnostic yield, sensitivity for malignancy, and safety.

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Robotic bronchoscopy with radial ultrasound and cone beam CT

A review of the first 200 biopsy procedures at UT Southwestern Medical Center. This study details the diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity for malignancy, specificity, safety, and other procedural outcomes

See the study

Contact us

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Cancer (who.int)
Lung cancer statistics | Cancer Research UK
van Meerbeeck JP, Franck C. Lung cancer screening in Europe: where are we in 2021? Transl Lung Cancer Res 2021;10(5):2407-2417.
Horeweg N, van der Aalst CM, Thunnissen E, et al. Characteristics of lung cancers detected by computer tomography screening in the randomized NELSON trial. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2013;187(8):848-854. DOI:10.1164/rccm.201209-1651OC.
Husta B., Batra H., Cheng G, et al. A Prospective Multicenter Evaluation of Shape-Sensing Robotic-Assisted Bronchoscopy with Integrated Mobile Cone-Beam Computer Tomography: Interim Results from the CONFIRM Study. Abstract 214, AABIP2024.

Disclosures

Ion Endoluminal System
The Ion Endoluminal System assists the user in navigating a catheter and endoscopic tools in the pulmonary tract using endoscopic visualization of the tracheobronchial tree for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. The Ion Endoluminal System enables fiducial marker placement. It does not make a diagnosis and is not for pediatric use. The Flexision Biopsy Needle is used with the Ion Endoluminal System to biopsy tissue from a target area in the lung.

The PlanPoint Software uses patient CT scans to create a 3D plan of the lung and navigation pathways for use with the Ion Endoluminal System. The Ion Endoluminal System, the Flexision Biopsy Needle and the PlanPoint Software are class IIa medical devices CE marked (CE 2460) under the European Medical Devices Regulation (EU 2017/745), manufactured by Intuitive Surgical, Inc. Refer to Instructions For Use before use.

Some products, features or technologies may not be available in all countries. Please contact your local Intuitive representative for product availability in your region. Refer to the product specific User Manual for indications, contraindications, warnings and other product information.

Individuals’ outcomes may depend on a number of factors—including but not limited to—patient characteristics, disease characteristics, and/or physician experience.