# A Biliary Tract-Specific Fluorescence Image-guided Surgery

> **NIH NIH R41** · OPTOSURGICAL, LLC · 2021 · $256,579

## Abstract

Abstract
The primary liver cancer including intrahepatic bile duct cancer pose significant global burden of illness
with increasing incidence and mortality in US and around the world. Surgery remains the most effective
form of treatment. However, surgical complication rates for medium to high complexity hepatectomies
persist in 30-40% range even in highly skilled hands and at high volume centers. The critical challenges
appear to be attributable to navigating liver parenchymal dissection, where size of resection surface,
associated with blood loss and missed bile leaks from the liver parenchyma, and prolonged operative
time during dissection pose significant obstacle.
 In this research, we propose to develop an upgraded laparoscopic imager for deeper biliary-specific
fluorescent imaging using a short-wave infrared (SWIR) sensor and high-definition RGB color vision,
and to test the utility of our multimodal laparoscopic imaging technique in liver surgery throughout
preclinical swine studies. The clear anatomic display of intrahepatic critical structures and functional
physiology will make the hepatic dissection safer and more efficient for any liver resection. The goal of
this 1-year research is to develop and evaluate the novel biliary-specific fluorescence and laparoscopic
vision/display through the following specific aims; Aim1: To develop a formfactor SWIR camera
system for fluorescence image-guided laparoscopy; Aim 2: To validate the usefulness of the
developed new vision platform in preclinical animal studies.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10323760
- **Project number:** 1R41EB032284-01
- **Recipient organization:** OPTOSURGICAL, LLC
- **Principal Investigator:** Richard Jaepyeong Cha
- **Activity code:** R41 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $256,579
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-09-23 → 2023-09-22

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10323760

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10323760, A Biliary Tract-Specific Fluorescence Image-guided Surgery (1R41EB032284-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10323760. Licensed CC0.

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