Medtech firm Creo ha seen its pioneering device for treating lung cancer being used on a patient for the first time.
The Chepstow-based Alternative Investment listed firm said its non-invasvie Mircoblate Flex device was used by Professor Pallav L Shah, to successfully ablate (remove) soft tissue lung legions on the patient at the Royal Brompton Hospital. The first live treatment is part of a multi-site clinical trial which will see up to 32 patients enrolled.
The device, which has huge commercial potential globally, has been designed to ablate nodules and tumors in several tissue types using the highest frequency microwave energy for tumour ablation.
Creo’s chief executive Craig Gulliford said: “This is another landmark moment for Creo Medical. Lung cancer has the second highest incidence of the top five cancers and one of the lowest survival rates. Unlike most other cancers there are no significant, accurate screening programmes in place for lung cancer but with screening, diagnosis and navigation technology advancing dramatically over recent years, we are set to see that change.
“The goal of screening is to find the disease early when the tumours are small. However, currently the treatment options for these early-stage lesions are inappropriately invasive, typically involving chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery or a combination thereof.”
“MicroBlate Flex has been designed for a range of different applications, including the capability of operating with these new lung cancer diagnosis and navigation technologies, and is ideal for the targeted ablation of pre-cancerous and potentially cancerous lesions in the lung and in other soft tissue. Like with all our products now in clinical practice in the gastroenterology market, we hope that our technology will enable clinicians to significantly impact on the improvement of cancer outcomes.
“The whole team at Creo are delighted that this clinical program has now started. The first enrolment and MicroBlate Flex’s first procedure safely completed is an important milestone in our goal to use advanced energy to transform lives.”
Professor Shah said: “The ablate device is another tool in our armoury for treating early lung cancers or metastatic tumours in the lung. It provides an alternative approach when surgery is not possible and may have the potential to create a very controlled ablation minimising any additional lung damage. The current trial should help evaluate its safety and role in thoracic cancers.”
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