A new technology could have vast implications for surgery outcomes, as described in this article.
"Engineers at Duke University have demonstrated a prototype X-ray scanning machine that reveals not just the shape of an object but its molecular composition. With unprecedented resolution and accuracy, the technology could revolutionize a wide range of fields such as cancer surgery, pathology, drug inspection and geology."
“While margins can often be evaluated by pathologists while the patient is still in the operating room, for tissues like breast, specimens removed at surgery require a 24-hour processing cycle before their margins can be properly assessed,” said Shannon McCall, Associate Professor of Pathology, Vice Chair for Translational Research in the Department of Pathology, and Director of the Duke BioRepository & Precision Pathology Center (Duke BRPC). “If this new instrument allowed us to accurately assess the margins of these types of tissues while the patient was still in the operating room, that would be fantastic. Women could potentially be spared additional surgical procedures.”
The BRPC team (especially Tom Ribar, Jonathan Bell, Ada Golowiejko, Aisha Cato), Managing Pathologists’ Assistant Emily Wagner, and Pathology Faculty leaders (Drs. Cardona, Bentley and McCall) are supporting this collaboration with the Pratt School of Engineering.