First in Minnesota: Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital Incorporates New State-of-the-Art Breast Cancer Treatment

EnVisio Surgical Navigation System and SmartClip Technology Improves Clinical and Cosmetic Outcomes for Breast Cancer Surgery patients

SAINT LOUIS PARK, Minn., April 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital is the first in the state to use Elucent’s EnVisio™ Surgical Navigation System and SmartClip™ technology. The tumor marker system can increase accuracy during breast cancer surgery.

Approximately one in eight women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. The SmartClip™ technology partnered with EnVisio Real-Time Navigation provides a tool that helps improve both clinical and cosmetic outcomes.

“This technology can help to very accurately pinpoint lesions in the breast,” says Kristin Ritter, MD, a surgeon at Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital. “This allows us to deliver excellent patient outcomes from an oncologic perspective while also taking into account the importance of cosmetic appearance as our patients undergo surgery as part of their cancer therapy.”

Navigation is quickly becoming an integral part of the surgical routine of clinicians. Surgical navigation is already the standard of care in Neurosurgery, ENT, and Orthopedics. Using this new technology, physicians implant the wireless SmartClip Soft Tissue Markers at the time of breast biopsy or any time prior to surgery.

Surgeons use 3D indications to accurately pinpoint and precisely mark the location of cancerous tissue that needs to be removed. Once integrated with the surgical cutting tools, it guides the surgeon during the procedure with real-time surgical navigation to locate and highlight malignant tissue seen on standard imaging.

“Because of this effectiveness, we have adopted the EnVisio Surgical Navigation System and SmartClip technology at Park Nicollet,” said Dr. Ritter. “We are proud to be the first in Minnesota to offer another option to our patients and to partner with a local company in our continued efforts to serve our patients.”

The SmartClip is incredibly small, measuring about the size of a grain of rice (about 1.4 mm x 8 mm). It emits a differentiated electromagnetic signature to provide true real-time stereotactic coordinates. SmartClips are FDA-cleared and safe to remain permanently inside patients if it is determined that surgery is not needed.

The EnVisio Navigation System and SmartClip Tissue Markers are manufactured by Elucent Medical Inc. of Eden Prairie, Minn. Elucent Chief Customer Officer, Ginger Sands, said, “We are constantly thinking about the unmet clinical needs of patients. At Elucent, our primary goal is to improve the patient experience and provide solutions that enable physicians to return to the precise location for intervention.”

About Elucent Medical
Based in Eden Prairie, Minn., Elucent Medical was established in 2014 by founders Dr. Lee Wilke, Laura G. King, Dr. Fred Lee Jr., and Dan van der Weide. The company specializes in sensitive cancer screening techniques with a focus on patient-first experience. Elucent Medical is centered on the continued collaboration of multi-disciplinary physicians who seek to improve patient outcomes. The EnVisio Navigation System addresses the clinical need to meet the broadest patient demographics from simple (single site) to complex (several sites in the breast and axilla) cases allowing individualized care. Elucent received FDA clearance for the EnVisio Navigation System and SmartClip technology in 2019. Learn more at www.elucentmedical.com.

About Park Nicollet Health Services
Park Nicollet Health Services is part of HealthPartners, the largest consumer-governed, non-profit health care organization in the nation with a mission to improve health and well-being in partnership with members, patients, and the community. Park Nicollet is an integrated care system that includes Methodist Hospital, Park Nicollet Clinic and Park Nicollet Foundation. For more information, visit parknicollet.com.

About Methodist Hospital
Methodist Hospital is part of HealthPartners, the largest consumer-governed, non-profit health care organization in the nation with a mission to improve health and well-being in partnership with members, patients, and the community. Methodist Hospital is renowned for high-quality patient care, medical expertise, and disease management. It is recognized as an area leader in cancer, cardiovascular and maternity care, and neuro-rehabilitation medicine, with experts who are highly trained to provide patients with personalized care and treatment. For more information, visit parknicollet.com.

Media Contact: Lauren Ashenfarb, 612-381-4338

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3936222b-e36c-410c-b3e5-46bb2957ebc1