Imaging Science Seminar - Image-Based Planning and Guidance of Bronchoscopy for the Chest
Image-Based Planning and Guidance of Bronchoscopy for the ChestDr. William E. HigginsDistinguished ProfessorPennsylvania State UniversityAbstract:Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide, accounting for over one million deaths each year. Many technical innovations in radiologic imaging and endoscopy have emerged recently in the effort against lung cancer. In particular, modern radiologic imaging scanners provide three-dimensional high-resolution X-ray CT and PET images of the chest (CT = computed tomography; PET = positron emission tomography). In addition, modern bronchoscopes enable deep navigation into the lung airway tree, while giving vivid video inside the airways and ultrasonic views outside the airways. Nevertheless, despite the availability of these tools, the 5-year lung-cancer survival rate remains under 15%. Our laboratory has worked toward constructing image-guided bronchoscopy (IGB) systems for the purpose of diagnosing and staging lung cancer. Our work combines methods from many branches of imaging science, including image processing, computer vision, computer graphics, and pattern recognition. Extensive studies over the years have shown the efficacy of our efforts for accurate minimally invasive lung-cancer diagnosis and staging. In particular, our results show: (1) system ease to use, independent of physician skill level; and (2) markedly higher procedure success than current practice. Our research has also led to the development of FDA-approved commercial systems used worldwide. This talk will highlight our overall IGB system effort, including basic research, experimental results, and entrepreneurial research translation.Speaker Bio:William E. Higgins received the B.S. degree in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He has held positions previously at the Honeywell Systems and Research Center, Minneapolis, MN, and the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN. He is currently a distinguished professor of electrical engineering, computer science and engineering, and bioengineering at the Pennsylvania State University. His research interests in multidimensional medical imaging science and applications to pulmonary medicine. During his 30-year tenure at Penn State, over 80 students have completed theses in his laboratory. He has served on various editorial boards and conference organization committees, and is a Fellow of the IEEE. In 2019, he was named the Penn State Inventor of the Year.Intended Audience:All are welcome. No background knowledge required.
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