HCA HealthONE Rocky Mountain Children’s First in Colorado to Offer Injection to Better Visualize Lung Cancer During Surgery

Denver, CO, October 27, 2024 --(PR.com)-- HCA HealthONE Rocky Mountain Children’s today announced it is the first medical center in Colorado to offer a unique injection as part of its oncology surgery services. The technology is the only FDA approved fluorescent imaging to light up lung cancer during surgery - enhancing surgeons’ ability to visualize cancer in real time.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths, with nearly 240,000 new diagnoses and 130,000 deaths from the disease in the U.S. each year. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in Colorado –In 2021 data shows that among all races and ethnicities, the age-adjusted rate of lung and bronchus cancer was 33.8 per 100,000 people, resulting in 2,291 reported cases. This rate reflects a significant health challenge, underscoring the importance of early detection and treatment efforts statewide. While surgery is a gold standard treatment, up to 55% of people with lung cancer who undergo surgery with curative intent have a recurrence.

“By lighting up lung lesions in real time during surgery, this technology helps us to accurately detect cancer and potentially find additional cancer ultimately improving outcomes,” said Stephen Rothenberg, MD, chief of pediatric surgery at HCA HealthONE Rocky Mountain Children’s. “We are thrilled to be among the first to offer this novel technology to our patients.”

In a clinical trial, the injection helped surgeons find a lung cancer lesion that could not be found with standard approaches in nearly 20% of patients. Administered by standard IV in as little as one hour before surgery, the injection includes a dye that lights up when a special camera is used during surgery. HCA HealthONE Rocky Mountain Children’s is committed to bringing the latest in cancer technologies to patients and is improving outcomes thanks to advanced technologies.

About HCA HealthONE Rocky Mountain Children’s
HCA HealthONE, one of the largest and most comprehensive healthcare systems in the Rocky Mountain region, offers more than 170 care sites in the Denver-metro area. Offering services across the continuum of care to meet patients’ total healthcare needs, HCA HealthONE includes seven acute care hospitals, a dedicated flagship pediatric hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, CareNow® urgent care clinics, mental health campuses, imaging and surgery centers, physician practices, home and hospice care, and AirLife Denver, which provides regional critical care air and ground transportation. Among HCA HealthONE’s care hospitals is Rocky Mountain Children’s, the only full-service pediatric anchor facility within HCA HealthONE’s system of care. With more than 300 board-certified pediatric specialists and sub-specialists, RMC has the largest Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in the Rocky Mountain region, the most experienced high-risk maternal fetal program, as well as a world-renowned specialized center for minimally invasive surgery for infants and children. RMC has been voted as Colorado Parent Magazine’s Family Favorite Hospital for multiple consecutive years. Consistently among the Denver Business Journals’ list of top corporate philanthropists in the Denver-metro area, HCA HealthONE was named as one of the most community-minded organizations by The Civic 50 and contributed more than $1 million through cash and in-kind donations last year alone, along with more than $400M in federal, state and local taxes.