COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 19, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- A Firefly is lighting up operating rooms, making it easier for robotic surgeons to remove tumors. However, this Firefly is not the type that children catch in a jar during summer evenings. It's a technology that uses a wavelength of light not visible to the human eye. A dye is then injected which causes a bright green fluorescence of certain tissues, hence the name "Firefly." This green glow lets surgeons clearly see the difference between cancerous and healthy tissue when performing surgery, allowing them to remove the tumor while saving the rest of the healthy organ.
Firefly Lights Up Operating Room: Glowing fireflies in the operating room? How fluorescent, green technology is helping surgeons remove tumors without removing organs.
Firefly Lights Up Operating Room (Superless): Glowing fireflies in the operating room? How fluorescent, green technology is helping surgeons remove tumors without removing organs.
Firefly in Operating Rooms Helps Cancer Patients Keep Organs Post-Surgery
Regular View vs. Firefly View: The picture on the left demonstrates the tumor without the Firefly. The picture on the right shows the tumor after the dye has been injected. The organ glows green, while the tumor stays dark.
Performing Robotic Surgery: Dr. Abaza controls the da Vinci (R) XI robot during surgery.
OhioHealth urologic robotic surgeon Ronney Abaza, MD, is a pioneer in the use of this technology. It was developed primarily for use in robotic kidney tumor surgery.
"Once the dye is injected, the kidney becomes green and the tumor is dark and it gives us additional information as to where the edge of the normal kidney and where the edge of the tumor are abutting," said Dr. Abaza. "The more certain we are that we're away from the organ and getting all the tumor out, the more of the kidney we can save."
No patients have had side effects from the use of the dye.
About OhioHealth
OhioHealth is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit, charitable, healthcare organization with Methodist roots. Based in Columbus, Ohio, OhioHealth is currently recognized as one of the top five large health systems in America by Truven Health Analytics. It is also recognized by FORTUNE Magazine as one of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" and has been for nine years in a row, 2007-2015.
Serving its communities since 1891, it is a family of 28,000 associates, physicians and volunteers, and a network of 11 member hospitals, 25+ health and surgery centers, hospice, home-health, medical equipment and other health services spanning a 40-county area.
OhioHealth member hospitals include OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital, OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, OhioHealth Doctors Hospital, OhioHealth Grady Memorial Hospital, OhioHealth Dublin Methodist Hospital, OhioHealth Hardin Memorial Hospital, OhioHealth Marion General Hospital, OhioHealth O'Bleness Hospital, OhioHealth MedCentral Mansfield, OhioHealth MedCentral Shelby and OhioHealth Rehabilitation Hospital. For more information, please visit our website at www.ohiohealth.com.
Share this article