Tumor ablation and biopsy procedures on oncology patients using a robotic arm were performed for the first time in Croatia at the Sisters of Mercy Hospital, the hospital reported on Friday.

“Percutaneous ablation procedures and tumor biopsies were successfully performed on oncology patients with the use of the latest robotic arm technology for the first time in Croatia at the Clinical Institute for Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology of the Sisters of Mercy Hospital,” the hospital pointed out in a press release.

Artificial intelligence, with the assistance of the Micromate robotic arm placed on the CT device, enables the probe for the thermal destruction of the tumor to be precisely positioned in the body after the initial imaging. This represents a significant help for precise navigation even to the most difficult to reach or difficult to see small tumors with a significantly lower amount of radiation for the patient.

All of the above at the same time speeds up the procedure itself.

The Sisters of Mercy hospital says that this robotic arm system has been used by oncology departments around the world for three years, and recently by larger oncology centers in Europe.

“Recognised as a center of excellence in the minimally invasive treatment of oncology patients in this part of Europe, the Department of Interventional Radiology of the Sisters of Mercy Hospital was provided with this technology in order to test all the possibilities and advantages of this system, which is planned to be used in the future by most oncology patients,” the hospital pointed out in the statement signed by director Davor Vagic and the interventional radiology subspecialist at the Clinical Institute for Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology Luka Novosel.