Image-guided robotic system for radiofrequency ablation of large liver tumor with single incision

Radiofrequency (RF) ablation surgery is effective in liver tumor treatment with non-collateral damage and reduced blood loss. However, the surgery is challenging for large tumor ablation in a minimally invasive procedure. In this paper, we developed a surgical robot system incorporating medical image information and surgeon’s planning knowledge to realize a minimally invasive procedure for large liver tumor treatment through a single incision. The system includes a surgical robot designed with spherical arc structures, medical image processing and planning, and trajectory generation modules. With planning strategies applied to medical images, multiple trajectories are automatically generated. ex-vivo and in-vivo tests were conducted and the experimental results demonstrated that the multiple RF needle insertion could accurately reach the target area and the required needle incision ports were significantly reduced.

Recommended citation: B. Duan, R. Wen, C.-B. Chng, W. Wang, P. Liu, J. Qin, et al., “Image-guided robotic system for radiofrequency ablation of large liver tumor with single incision,” in Ubiquitous Robots and Ambient Intelligence (URAI), 2015 12th International Conference on, 2015, pp. 284-289.