SEISMIC Consortium Secures €23.5 Million to Develop Next-Generation Minimally Invasive Brain Surgery Technologies
核心洞察
The SEISMIC consortium (搜索) has secured €23.5 million in public funding from the Innovative Health Initiative to develop minimally invasive neurosurgical techniques for treating brain hemorrhages and tumors.
Hospital Clínic-IDIBAPS (搜索) will lead clinical research projects focused on cerebral hemorrhagic stroke (搜索) treatment, coordinated by neurosurgeon Ramon Torné with €1.4 million in dedicated funding.
The five-year program will develop integrated technologies including real-time surgical navigation combining ultrasound and X-ray imaging, targeting three critical neurological conditions where surgery is essential for patient survival.
The SEISMIC consortium (搜索) has secured €23.5 million in public funding from the Innovative Health Initiative Joint Undertaking (搜索) to pioneer next-generation minimally invasive neurosurgical technologies. The ambitious five-year program aims to transform high-risk brain surgery procedures into safer, faster, and more accessible interventions for patients with critical neurological conditions.
Hospital Clínic-IDIBAPS (搜索) will spearhead clinical research projects focused on developing new minimally invasive surgical techniques for cerebral hemorrhagic stroke (搜索) treatment. The initiative is coordinated by Ramon Torné, a neurosurgeon and neurointerventionist at Hospital Clínic and researcher in the IDIBAPS Cerebrovascular Diseases research group, with dedicated funding of €1.4 million.
Comprehensive Public-Private Partnership
The €23.5 million in public funding will be complemented by €14.9 million in contributions and additional resources from industry partners, creating a robust research ecosystem. The consortium brings together leading industry players including Philips, Oldelft Ultrasound, DEMCON Curix, Yaskawa, us4us, Caresyntax, Surgical Science, Boston Scientific, and Bracco.
Academic partners include Erasmus MC, Erasmus University Rotterdam, University Medical Center Utrecht, Radboud University Medical Center, Hospital Clinic Barcelona, IDIBAPS, Vall d'Hebron University Hospital, and University of Ljubljana. Patient organizations Fundacio Ictus and Cancer Patients Europe also participate in the consortium.
Addressing Critical Unmet Medical Needs
Neurological conditions, including severe conditions such as bleedings deep in the brain (hemorrhagic stroke (搜索)), chronic bleedings between the skull and the brain (subdural hematoma (搜索)) and brain tumors (搜索), represent a leading cause of ill health, disability, and overall disease burden globally.
Despite significant advances in neurosurgery, minimally invasive neurosurgical techniques continue to lag significantly behind other surgical disciplines. Current clinical procedures rely on large skull openings, optical and electromagnetic surgical navigation systems based on preoperative imaging, and fragmented intraoperative imaging, which disrupt surgical workflows and compromise precision.
Innovative Technology Development
SEISMIC will develop an integrated suite of technologies designed to revolutionize neurosurgical practice. The program includes real-time surgical navigation that combines ultrasound guidance with live X-ray imaging, highly realistic simulation platforms for clinician training, and minimally invasive biopsy and treatment techniques.
The project will focus on three neurological conditions in which surgery is critical to patient survival and quality of life: intracerebral hemorrhage (搜索), subdural hematoma (搜索), and brain tumors (搜索). The initiative includes conducting clinical trials in humans, studying new surgical approaches to access deep areas of the brain, and developing new experimental models of minimally invasive surgical techniques.
Clinical Research Program
The comprehensive research program encompasses eight clinical studies over five years. Hospital Clínic-IDIBAPS (搜索) will participate as a partner in multiple clinical projects linked to the consortium, including studies of new minimally invasive techniques for chronic subdural hematoma (搜索) treatment.
By reducing procedure times, minimizing surgical trauma, and accelerating patient recovery, the SEISMIC project aims to improve clinical outcomes and expand access to specialized neurosurgical care for currently underserved populations.
The project operates under grant agreement No 101253085 from the Innovative Health Initiative Joint Undertaking (搜索), which receives support from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program and life science industries represented by COCIR, EFPIA, Europa Bio, MedTech Europe and Vaccines Europe.