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Robot Snakes To Fight Cancer Via Natural Orifice Surgery
Hugh Pickens writes writes "BBC reports that on a robot snake that, guided by a skilled surgeon and designed to get to places doctors are unable to reach without opening a patient up, could help spot and remove tumors more effectively. Robot snakes could be as minimally invasive using body orifices or local incisions as points of entry. 'Surgery is a cornerstone treatment for cancer so new technologies making it even more precise and effective are crucial,' says Safia Danovi from Cancer Research UK. 'Thanks to research, innovations such as keyhole surgery and robotics are transforming the treatment landscape for cancer patients and this trend needs to continue.' Robot snakes could complement a robotic surgical system that has been used for the past decade — the Da Vinci surgical system — that is controlled by a surgeon sitting in a nearby chair and looking at a screen displaying the area of the body where the surgery is taking place. The surgeon manipulates the robot by pressing pedals and moving levers. Natural orifice surgery (warning: pictures of the inside of a person) has the potential to revolutionize surgery in the same way that laparoscopic surgery replaced open surgery. The objective is to enter the abdomen through an internal organ rather than through the skin — e.g. access via the mouth, esophagus and stomach, and then through the stomach wall. 'We are at the earliest stage of establishing the problems and proposing solutions,' says Rob Buckingham of OC Robotics, developer of the robot snake (video). 'Our prototype signals a direction of travel and is a milestone towards exploring a new surgical paradigm.'"
So having a living snake put up your ass is no longer merely a penalty for striking a Roman citizen now? Very creative.
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I just read that the TSA is training their agents in this techniques.
Quite inspiring title. I will, in fact, use it to augment my collection of suave pick up lines.
I hadn't the slightest objection to his spending his time planning massacres for the bourgeoisie... (P.G. Wodehouse)
I'd be very happy if they had those snakes at the local doctors office and they could be trained to crush my kidney stones. Man... this hurts.
I was promised a flying car. Where is my flying car?
Robot snakes with lasers in your body. What could possibly go wrong! I know that one day we will look back at the times that unreliable human surgeons cut people, but I certainly wouldn't want to be an "early adopter" on this one.
Does the Japanese porn industry have one of these snakes?
The potential is limitless!
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
I once got my stomach observed -the classical observation, no surgery. ;-)
The process is a bit shocking (mainly because once you have this big tube inserted in your esophagus you cannot talk anymore, and it's more impressive that you may think)
I can say they start with an empty stomach, and inflate it (with just air, through the tube) so yes the visibility is near perfect.
Then within my observation they took samples: basically, they have a sharp tool that will just scorch a bit out, and basically they leave the wound unattended, and it heals, and you even don't feel anything neither at scorch time nor after. (you do feel the scorch traction mind you, a bit like when a dentist throws a tooth away from your mouth: 'hummph' -hey what what is he doing? but then it's just over
So, while definitely not a professional myself, I'd say reaching the stomach wall and getting through it *is* easy and not consequential, apart psychologically...
Herve S.
There are plenty of endoscopic surgeries already. People are attaching more actuators to the front to help with steering, but for obvious reasons, you want to keep these things as small as possible. Why you would want to shove the "robot" from the article up your behind is instead of a standard endoscope is beyond me.
I've got a biological snake that can cure cancer via natural orifices... ...if you know what I mean.
Compared to skin (heals rapidly, and can be kept clean while healing with modern methods), puncturing the alimentary canal (mouth to anus) is REALLY stupid. Bathed in dangerous chemicals, hostile bacteria (when not confined to their natural environment), and requiring tricky nutrition for the patient while healing), that is no place to be poking holes into the interior of the body (remember, topologically, it's the same as the outside).
Using the "snakes" to treat polyps, ulcers, cancers, or other issues within the alimentary canal does have some potential advantages over the combination of both puncturing the skin and the alimentary canal to reach them.
As a cancer survivor the surgery to remove the tumour sucked. Actually the whole experience was not great. However if they have a way of removing it without cutting me up I am all for it. One less thing to recover from! The only good thing was thank god I live in Canada. I had time off work with pay and the entire treatment was free. So while having cancer was bad at least it didn't bankrupt my family.