3D Models of Organs to Aid Researchers

Functioning three-dimensional (3D) human organs are being developed as part of a virtual patient simulation system to help researchers create and test new minimally invasive surgical techniques.

The virtual augmentation and simulation for surgery and therapy (VASST) laboratory at Robarts Research Institute (London, Ontario, Canada) is working to advance a broad range of medical procedures in such areas as neurosurgery, prostate cancer therapy, breast cancer therapy, breast cancer biopsy, and cardiac intervention and surgery. The VASST lab designs and implements the complex algorithms required for real-time 3D modeling of human organs--from the beating human heart to the functioning brain—for use in image-guided surgery and therapy procedures. These algorithms, both serial and parallel, run the gamut from generation of patient-specific models and 3D geometric alignment to interactive real-time soft tissue simulation.

"By creating an environment to model organs and simulate surgical procedures, we will accelerate the development of new minimally invasive therapies,” said Dr. Terry Peters, scientist and principal investigator at Robarts. As part of a two-year consulting project, Robarts will work closely with Atami (London, Canada) to develop software for the virtual patient simulation system. The system will incorporate world-class imaging processing and analysis techniques developed by Robarts.



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Robarts Research Institute