The Institute of Chest Wall Surgery
Chest Wall Tumor Resection and Chest Wall Reconstruction in A Middle-aged Female Patient
Medical History
The patient, a middle-aged woman, underwent surgery for left-sided breast cancer 10 years ago. However, the tumor recurred after the initial surgery, resulting in two additional surgical treatments. Over the past 2 months, the patient began experiencing discomfort again in her left chest wall. Medical examinations revealed a second recurrence of the tumor, which was found to be rapidly growing.
Preoperative Examination
The tumor has invaded the soft tissues of the chest wall, infiltrating into the bone structure and even the pericardium. This aggressive spread has compromised multiple ribs, the costal cartilage, and parts of the sternum on the left chest wall. The patient’s condition is serious.
Surgical Overview
The surgery began with the complete resection of the tumor, followed by the reconstruction of the chest wall defect using digital materials. The surgery was completed after 2 hours and achieved satisfactory results.
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Next-Generation Repair Materials—Exploring the Use of Digital Materials in Chest Wall Reconstruction Surgery
Surgery for tumors in the chest wall is generally more complex than surgeries for tumors located elsewhere. In such operations, not only is the resection of the tumor required, but the reconstruction of the bone structure of the chest wall is also necessary. Without this reconstruction, the resulting bone defect could adversely affect both the patient's normal physiological functions and the appearance of the chest wall.
Chest wall reconstruction has always been a highly challenging task, primarily due to the limitations of repair materials. Although various materials are available for clinical use, each comes with significant drawbacks, which have greatly restricted the advancement of chest wall reconstruction surgery.
To seek more optimal repair material, the Institute of Chest Wall Surgery (ICWS) has pioneered the concept of digital material. This next-generation repair material is manufactured under direct digital control throughout all processing stages. The production process is as follows:
(1) Obtain patient’s lesion data; (2) Create digital images of the lesion; (3) Simulate the extent of the lesion resection with computer; (4) Simulate the specific area for surgical repair using computer; (5) Determine the precise shape of the material using computer; (6)Manufacture the material using specialized techniques.
Digital material offers a high degree of personalization and precision, as it is designed and produced strictly based on patient-specific lesion data. Additionally, the specialized manufacturing techniques allow for extremely fine detail in the operational areas of the digital materials, making them easier to handle during surgery and significantly reducing the complexity of the procedure.