Virtuoso Surgical, Inc., a Nashville-based company developing robotic tools for endoscopic surgery, announced that its Virtuoso Surgical Robotic System has received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for bladder lesion removal via en bloc excision. This designation positions the company at the forefront of early diagnosis and innovative bladder cancer care.
Revolutionary Robotic Technology for Endoscopic Surgery
The Virtuoso system leverages a patented surgeon-controlled platform that utilizes needle-sized robotic arms designed to significantly enhance the precision and dexterity of minimally invasive surgery performed via rigid endoscopes. The device addresses a significant clinical need for improved specimen quality and staging in bladder lesions, the majority of which are bladder cancer.
"Virtuoso is unlike any surgical robot available today, and our vision is to provide surgeons with unprecedented dexterity and control in rigid endoscopic surgery, which is a distinct set of procedures and approaches that have not yet benefited from robotics," stated Dr. Duke Herrell, Virtuoso Surgical CEO and urologic surgeon. "Virtuoso is starting with the removal of bladder lesions, the first critical step in diagnosing, staging and determining the management for cancerous lesions."
Enhanced Surgical Technique Shows Clinical Promise
The en bloc resection technique enabled by the Virtuoso system preserves the integrity of the pathological specimen and increases the accuracy of cancer staging, resulting in more definitive diagnoses versus the standard transurethral approach TURBT (transurethral resection of bladder tumor). Recent randomized studies have demonstrated that manually performed en bloc techniques can lower one-year cancer recurrence rates versus standard TURBT.
However, the manual method is currently complex for surgeons to learn and perform, which limits widespread application in the U.S. and worldwide. With Virtuoso's two instruments and robotic dexterity, the company aims to enable the widespread adoption of en bloc resection.
Clinical Validation and Expert Endorsement
The Virtuoso robotic system recently facilitated a series of endoscopic bladder lesion excisions using the advanced en bloc technique performed by Dr. Jeremy Teoh, a world-renowned bladder cancer surgeon and researcher, at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK).
"The ability to perform an en bloc resection for bladder cancer with this level of robotic assistance is a game-changer even for an expert in the technique," commented Dr. Teoh. "This robotic approach has the potential to enable the widespread adoption of en bloc techniques, thereby minimizing local recurrence and providing a more definitive pathological specimen, which is crucial for guiding subsequent treatment decisions."
FDA Breakthrough Device Program Benefits
The FDA Breakthrough Devices Program accelerates the development and review of medical devices that offer more effective diagnosis or treatment for life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating conditions. Qualifying technologies, such as Virtuoso Surgical's system, benefit from prioritized regulatory interactions, more frequent feedback, and expedited assessment pathways to ensure rapid patient access once safety and effectiveness standards are met.
Technical Innovation and Future Applications
Founded in 2016, Virtuoso Surgical is led by experts in surgical robotics, urologic surgery, engineering and AI. The Virtuoso system features a pair of instrument delivery arms made of concentric nitinol tubes that mimic a surgeon's hand motions to offer unprecedented control and dexterity to a full range of endoscopic applications.
The system utilizes patented technology initially developed by Virtuoso's founders at Johns Hopkins University, Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, with funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.
Virtuoso Surgical plans to seek FDA regulatory approval and partner with clinicians to further validate the clinical advantages of its robotic platform through ongoing clinical studies and expanded patient access. The company has future plans to explore the use of this technology in urology and subsequently in various surgical specialties that utilize rigid endoscopic surgery, including gynecology, pulmonology, otolaryngology and neurosurgery.
