Guang-Zhong Yang, PhD, FREng

YangProfessor Guang-Zhong Yang (FREng, FIEEE, FIET, FAIMBE, FIAMBE, FMICCAI, FCGI) is director and co-founder of the Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery (http://www.imperial.ac.uk/hamlyn), Deputy Chairman of the Institute of Global Health Innovation, Imperial College London, UK. Professor Yang also holds a number of key academic positions at Imperial – he is Director and Founder of the Royal Society/Wolfson Medical Image Computing Laboratory, co-founder of the Wolfson Surgical Technology Laboratory, Chairman of the Centre for Pervasive Sensing. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, fellow of IEEE, IET, AIMBE, IAMBE, MICCAI, and City & Guilds.  He is a recipient of the Royal Society Research Merit Award and listed in The Times Eureka ‘Top 100’ in British Science.

Professor Yang’s main research interests are in medical imaging, sensing and robotics. In imaging, he is credited for a number of novel MR phase contrast velocity imaging and computational modelling techniques that have transformed in vivo blood flow quantification and visualization. These include the development of locally focused imaging combined with real-time navigator echoes for resolving respiratory motion for high-resolution coronary-angiography, as well as MR dynamic flow pressure mapping for which he received the ISMRM I. I Rabi Award. He pioneered the concept of perceptual docking for robotic control, which represents a paradigm shift of learning and knowledge acquisition of motor and perceptual/cognitive behaviour for robotics, as well as the field of Body Sensor Network (BSN) for providing personalized wireless monitoring platforms that are pervasive, intelligent, and context-aware.

Precision Surgery – from Imaging, Molecular Oncology to Robotics

Advances in medicine have made a significant impact on the management of major acute diseases. Earlier diagnosis, improved efficiency and delivery of therapeutic interventions combined with advances in surgical techniques with an emphasis on the quality of functional outcomes have become increasingly important. Presently, however, there is disconnect between early detection of small precursor lesions and the need for precision intervention. Maximising precision at the microscopic scale is certain to become increasingly important for therapeutic interventions as the accuracy of diagnostic tests continues to improve such that malignant lesions are identified at an even early stage and smaller scale. The purpose of this talk is to outline major challenges and opportunities of harnessing information at molecular, organ and system levels in order to push the boundaries of new therapies. It demonstrates the latest imaging, molecular oncology and robotics techniques that leverage cellular, molecular and metabolomics data to enhance precision, improve accuracy and guide intervention. In particular, it will emphasise the role of robotics in precision surgery and potential translational barriers that need to be overcome, leading to future robotic platforms that are smart, pervasive, and can be seamlessly integrated into the new surgical workflows.