Galil Medical, maker of advanced cryosurgery systems (where extreme cold is used to destroy cancer cells), announced today a new development in minimally invasive treatment of kidney cancer using cryosurgery under laparoscopic guidance.
Galil claims that at the Urology Department of Assaf-Harofeh Medical Center, near Tel Aviv, its cryosurgical equipment was used last week to successfully wear away renal tissue in an animal study.
During the procedure, a very small incision was made to allow the laparoscopic camera and cryosurgical equipment access to the kidney.
The surgeon, Amnon Zisman, MD was able to view the placement of the probe and frozen region in the body through the laparoscopic camera, enabling him to freeze the targeted tissue with no damage to surrounding healthy tissue.
Dr. Zisman, principle investigator in the study, declared the procedure a success. "Using an ultra-thin, ultra-short laparoscopic cryo needle has a great potential for further use in humans for the treatment of renal tumors."
Galil Medical's President and CEO, James McGlone added, "This case proves that our proprietary 3rd generation cryosurgery equipment is highly effective in killing renal tumors, and we expect it will meet the increasing patient demand for minimally invasive procedures with short recovery times."
Galil Medical, with operations in Israel and the US, specializes in the development of minimally invasive medical products and systems. Lumenis (Nasdaq: LUME), formerly ESC Medical Systems, and Elron (Nasdaq: ELRN) are major shareholders of Galil Medical.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 9 January, 2002