Jelle Ruurda

UMC Utrecht

In short, Jelle Ruurda's research entails the following: 

INTelligent computeR-Aided Surgical gUidance for Robot-assisted surGEry – the INTRA-SURGE-project for the future of surgery

Every year, 3000 patients are diagnosed with esophageal cancer in the Netherlands. Approximately 25% of them is a candidate for surgical resection of the esophagus. Despite efforts to reduce complications, including performing minimally invasive surgery and dedicated training programs, morbidity and mortality remain substantial. During robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) procedures, several vital anatomical structures are located within the narrow operating space. The INTRA SURGE-project proposes to advance surgery by developing intelligent surgical guidance based on artificial intelligence to realize computer-aided anatomy recognition to support surgeons intraoperatively, prevent unnecessary tissue injury and increase patient safety.