The Columbus Regional Health Lung Institute is one of the first centers in Indiana to offer Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) ablation. This latest FDA-approved technology is used for treating advanced lung cancer or metastatic cancer to the lungs, allowing for additional cancer treatment options for patients.
PEF ablation is a minimally invasive cancer treatment that uses high-voltage, ultra-short electrical pulses to disrupt cancer cell membranes, causing them to die while sparing healthy tissue. This makes the technology ideal for tumors that are not responsive to radiation or surgical resection. The energy is delivered via a small needle connected to an electrode that gets placed within the tumor using robotic and CT-guided bronchoscopy and then removed after the energy is delivered. PEF works to control the tumor locally and potentially stimulate an immune response against the cancer.
PEF is a newer treatment option for various cancers in the lungs that have failed first-line treatment. It can be offered for local control of recurrent cancer alone or along with other treatment options, such as immunotherapy, as deemed best by a multi-disciplinary approach between Oncology, Interventional Pulmonology, and Surgery.
"We offer one of the highest-volume programs in the country for minimally invasive, advanced diagnostic, and interventional procedures using Robotic and Live 3D CT Imaging, which allows us to localize and treat the cancerous lesions in the lung with high precision and accuracy,” said Lung Institute Director and Interventional Pulmonologist, Deepankar Sharma, MD.
In addition to PEF ablation for treating later-stage cancers, advances in technology have allowed physicians the ability to detect lung nodules and potentially cancerous lesions earlier than ever before via low-dose CT for lung cancer screening. The multi-disciplinary team from the Lung Institute and Radiology has conducted more than 8,000 screenings, resulting in more than 200 lung cancers identified. Due to lung screening, the majority of these cancers were found in the early stages, allowing patients to be treated in a timely manner.
Each of the high-risk cancer screening scans and new diagnoses are reviewed at the Columbus Regional Health Lung Nodule Review Board and Multi-Disciplinary Tumor board, which allows multiple specialists from various fields of medicine to review each case and work collectively to determine the best plan of care for patients. A dedicated Lung Cancer Nurse Navigator also works with the patient and physician offices to expedite appointments, allowing further testing, treatment, or intervention to begin immediately.
“We have an edge over other health systems with our extensive experience in offering a well-integrated program from lung cancer screening, advanced procedures, and cutting-edge treatment options involving multiple specialties, resulting in comprehensive care for our patients right in the community,” said Dr. Sharma.
