CAS-One IR goes Down Under: The First Installation in Australia

We are happy to welcome Gold Coast University Hospital as a Quality Ablation center.

This project started as usual – with significant interest from the Director of Interventional Radiology – Dr. Mudassir Rashid. Then the real work started – for him to show the value of the device to his hospital. He focused on two main things - reducing local tumor progression, especially with AblaSure, and being able to treat more complex cases in less time. At the same time, there was also significant work from our HQ in Bern in gaining the regulatory approval with the local authorities (the TGA), and managing complex device importation constraints – without the aid of a distributor.

Finally, in June, the hard work came to fruition - the first cases were completed – starting in the liver and kidney.

General impressions were as follows:

Exceeding Expectations: Unlike many devices that look promising but underdeliver, CAS-One IR was described as outperforming expectations from the very first case.

Intuitive Use: Even with a modest learning curve, clinicians found the system intuitive and accessible to those with basic needle skills.

Confidence from Day One: Despite being new, the technology inspired immediate trust. Dr. Rashid said: “We have seen a lot of new systems come out and they seem fancy, but when you try them, they don’t necessarily stack up, but this system has been impressive. The very first one we did, it was bang on, hit it in the center on the first go"

Clinically, the users were able to give specific feedback on how Quality Ablation with CAS-One IR improved patient care:

• Lesions not visible with ultrasound
• Small secondary liver metastases (e.g., from colorectal cancer)

Improved MDT Confidence:
Ablation confirmation via AblaSure, and fusion for invisible lesions provides radiologists with the confidence to advocate for curative interventions in multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings.

After one week of using CAS-One IR, the MDT was specifically asking This lesion is not visible on ultrasound – are you sure you can treat it?' And now the answer was of course 'yes we can – please send the patient'

Regarding Ablation Confirmation with AblaSure, Dr. Rashid said: “We now know on the table whether we got all the lesion, and if we have any concerns, we can treat them immediately”

Changing Referral Patterns:
The tool is anticipated to shift case profiles beyond HCC to include more metastatic cases that previously defaulted to surgery or systemic therapy.

Ablation Confirmation with AblaSure and a Reablation plan

The team was also confident in the positive Economic & Operational Impact, such as:

Reduced Surgical Burden, by minimizing ICU and inpatient bed usage, avoiding extensive recovery periods, and lowering hospital costs and reducing patient morbidity

Faster Patient Recovery:
Patients typically resume normal activities within days, unlike surgery which may require extended recovery.

Reduced IR Suite time
Even the first few cases were done in less than an hour - an approximate 25% reduction.

The technological advantages were noted: In the words of one clinician: “This ranks in the top five technologies I’ve seen in the last 20 years.”

It was compared in impact to modern thrombectomy devices, and considered a groundbreaking advancement in image-guided ablation.

Other key feedback:

• Dr. John Grieve (IR): Praised the intuitive workflow and design and believes CAS-One IR is how he would envision modern, practical ablation guidance technology.
• Dr. Mat Hope (Anesthesiology): Confirmed that the technology adds no new burden to anesthesia protocols and remains straightforward from their perspective.
  

And finally, Nicole Brown (HP Team Lead Interventional Radiology), who was  instrumental not only hands-on in the IR suite with CAS-One IR, but also in the months of coordinating training and pre-planning prior to the first procedure, said of CAS-One IR: 

"Introducing CAS-One IR workflow into our Nexaris AngioCT suite has streamlined a Radiographer's role in ablations. Previously, procedural uncertainty often existed, as Radiographers faced a variety of procedural complexities, switching between ultrasound and CT modalities, and frequently needed to make case-by-case adjustments to a procedural approach. 

Average case lengths have dropped by one-quarter, from 154 to 121 minutes (including anaesthesia).  In just a short time, I can already foresee just how beneficial this technology will be for our Gold Coast Health ablation patients and other patients requiring complex imaging-guided interventional procedures.  We are passionate to see what else can be achieved with CAS-One IR in the future.  We have also appreciated the willingness and availability of our CASCINATION colleagues for procedural guidance and support for our cases, despite the obvious geographical and time-zone considerations."

The hospital heard so much attention regarding CAS-One IR, the media team highlighted it here

We look forward to more success in Australia as the word travels! A big thanks to our lead Clinical Application Specialist Thijs Stoker for making the trip and ensuring the onboarding went perfectly!