News

As annoying — and agonizing — as it can be, pain is a common and important signal from your body. It’s a sign that something needs attention, and, once you’ve given it that attention and the pain lessens, its absence is an indication that you’re healing.

In a surgical suite at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, a robotic arm snakes an ultra-thin, ultra-flexible tube through a patient’s airway. Once the tube reaches the lungs, the surgeon operating the device remotely uses a tiny camera to search the area for an abnormal growth, or nodule, that might be cancerous. Once located, a needle pierces the nodule for biopsy.