Dr. Kim Young-woo of the National Cancer Center, second from left, demonstrates how to manipulate his newly-developed robotic endoscope for abdominal surgery at KINTEX in Ilsan on Oct. 13. / Courtesy of the National Cancer Center

By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter

A team of Korean researchers has developed a so-called next generation pelviscope, a minimally invasive surgical tool mostly used for abdominal areas.

Dr. Kim Young-woo, chief of the Gastric Cancer Department of the National Cancer Center, and his fellows completed the first stage of development of the high definition (HD), three-dimensional (3D) imaging pelviscope earlier this month and exhibited the test model on Oct. 13 at KINTEX in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province.

"The new device gives a clearer, sharper image of the inside. Operators can feel as if they are looking directly into the organs. Therefore, doctors will feel less tired when looking at the screen for hours during surgery," Kim said.

Pelviscopic surgery is widely used around the world and involves doctors making several two- to three-centimeter holes and inserting an endoscope into them to get images. They use special scalpels and other tools for the operation.

The accurate and specific images of the new technology will eventually lead to it replacing the current 2D-pelviscopes, Kim added

bjs@koreatimes.co.kr