IPO Lisbon has reached a new milestone in medical innovation in Portugal by becoming the country’s first hospital to use a robotic bronchoscopy system for lung cancer diagnosis.
The new system represents a significant advance in early disease detection, enabling doctors to reach peripheral lung nodules, including small lesions that are often difficult to access using conventional methods. The bronchial tree — the network of airways branching throughout the lungs — has an estimated total length of around 2,400 kilometres.
With robotic bronchoscopy, the aim is to enable faster and more accurate diagnoses at earlier stages of the disease, allowing treatment to begin sooner when lung cancer is confirmed. In benign cases, the technology can also help avoid unnecessary procedures, reducing risks, complications and anxiety for patients.
The technology’s potential extends beyond diagnosis. In the future, the same system could be used in selected cases to treat lung lesions, avoiding more invasive surgery and supporting a more conservative approach that preserves more lung tissue and improves patients’ quality of life.
