Plato’s Cave: Advanced 3D anatomical modeling
In planning for invasive surgical procedures or focused radiation therapy, physicians have long had to extrapolate from many different sources of information to get an accurate, complete picture of the patient’s anatomy and the course of the disease. X-rays, CT scans, MRI, functional MRI, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), high-resolution ultrasound (HRUS), four-dimensional fluid dynamics, and PET scans all give physicians some of the information they need, but they are at best still separate pieces of a complex puzzle. Dr. E. Brian Butler, chair of Radiation Oncology at Houston Methodist Hospital, worked with Houston Methodist’s 3D advanced visualization expert Paul Sovelius to develop a remarkable 3D system that combines the data from multiple types of scans to create a single, comprehensive digital image of the patient’s internal anatomy. They call it Plato’s Cave, in a reference to the allegory of prisoners in a cave whose perception of reality was limited to shadows on a cave wall. Only through escaping this cave would these prisoners come to understand the true nature of the world. Analogously, physicians can use this new 3D “dual-reality” technology to gain a truly accurate internal view of a treatment area. They can then navigate through this 3D view to help them precisely plan a surgery; develop a radiation plan that maximizes radiation delivery to cancerous tissues while minimizing its absorption by healthy tissues; or even perform a detailed surgical simulation in advance of the actual procedure. Plato’s Cave may ultimately change the ways that surgeons and radiologists approach cases — helping to increase accuracy and improve patient outcomes.
Plato’s Cave: high-resolution 3D image of a patient’s internal anatomy, including bones, organs, and blood vessels
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Houston Methodist Research Institute