Assignment
Begin by reading the passage below.
3D Technology May Improve Medicine
3D imaging
technology adopted from other industries (such as gaming and entertainment) is
becoming a real game changer in medicine. The new 3D tools import MRI or
CT scans and render these images into virtual 3D images, allowing the surgeons
to plan in great detail before cutting open the patient.
Dr. James
Chandler and Dr. Orin Bloch, neurosurgeons at Northwestern University, have
started using such 3D endoscopic systems to more precisely remove brain tumors
in patients. The 3D technology allows the surgeon to see more vividly,
enabling them to remove all traces of the tumor and less non-cancerous tissue.
The precision allows for less cutting and therefore, a speedier recovery
for the patient after surgery. More importantly, the added precision is
crucial in lowering the known risks in brain surgery, such as vision loss and
coma.
For breast cancer
patients, 3D imaging technology is beginning to improve detection and
post-surgery outcome. With traditional
2D mammogram, tumors in hidden shadows are often undetected. “The problem
of overlapping shadows has confounded breast cancer screening because
mammograms don’t show cancers that are hidden by overlapping tissue,” says Dr.
Kyle Myers, Director of FDA’s Division of Imaging, Diagnostics, and Software
Reliability. The newer 3D technologies would enable the doctors to see
the tumors in these hidden areas.
Even without
expensive 3D imaging systems, some tech savvy doctors are exploring the use of
consumer 3D technology to improve surgery outcomes. Take the case of a
pediatric cardiologist, Dr. Redmond Burke of Nicklaus Children’s
Hospital, who used Google Cardboard to successfully operate on Teegan
Lexcen, a baby with an abnormal heart. Dr. Burke used an app called
Sketchfab to render the baby’s CT scans into 3D visuals on the iPhone.
With the iPhone and Google Cardboard, he visualized the surgery in
virtual reality. “I think about heart
repairs in three dimensions,” said Dr. Burke. That surely can be
expedited by 3D technology.
Other doctors had
already concluded that Teegan was inoperable but 3D enabled Dr. Burke to
successfully operate on Teegan by allowing him to plan out every incision and
every step of the surgery in 3D. This lessened
the time the infant stayed cut opened and it was crucial because the more time
spent in heart surgery for a baby, the higher the chances of heart damage.
Despite the many reported cases of 3D technology producing favorable results, more studies still need to be done to quantitatively confirm improved surgery results from the implementation of 3D technology. However, it all looks very promising from what we’ve seen so far.
Adapted from article by Amadeo Constanzo, SpirFit.com, February 23, 2016. You may freely post and distribute this article if and only if you include this statement with the above link to the original article. More CATW practices and lessons are available at SpirFit.org
Writing Directions
Read the passage above and write an essay
responding to the ideas it presents. In your essay, be sure to summarize
the passage in your own words, stating the author’s most important ideas.
Develop your essay by identifying one idea in the passage that you feel is
especially significant, and explain its significance. Support your claims with
evidence or examples drawn from what you have read, learned in school, and/or
personally experienced.
Remember to review your essay and make
any changes or corrections that will help your reader follow your thinking.
You will have 90 minutes to complete your essay.
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