Background: Percutaneous lung biopsy (PLB) is currently widely utilized in the diagnosis and treatment of lung tumors, owing to its advantages of minimal trauma, high detection rate, and precise localization. However, traditional computed tomography (CT)-guided freehand PLB procedures often involve multiple puncture adjustments and a relatively high incidence of complications. The aim of this study is to investigate whether laser-guided technology can effectively reduce the operative time and incidence of complications.

Methods: This study included 141 patients who underwent CT-guided PLB at the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University between January 2022 and January 2024. These patients were divided into two groups based on the use of laser-guided technology during the procedure: the laser-guided group (47 patients) and the manual group (94 patients). Clinical data from all patients were collected. Information such as the success rate of biopsy procedures and the incidence of complications was analyzed and compared.

Results: The procedure time in the laser-guided group was shorter than that in the manual group (P=0.008). In the laser-guided group, the number of adjustments needed to reach the tumor during the positioning step was less than the manual group (P=0.001). In the laser-guided group, the number of CT scans performed before reaching the tumor was smaller than in the manual group (P=0.01). The distance from the first puncture to the lung tumor in the laser-guided group was closer than that in the manual group (P=0.049). The laser-guided group had a smaller angular deviation from the target at the first puncture than the manual group (P=0.004).

Conclusions: Laser-guided technology has the advantages of shorter operation time and less adjustment of biopsy needles. However, laser-guided technology does not reduce the complication rate of biopsy surgery or the length of hospital stay after surgery and there is no statistical difference in the accuracy of pathological diagnoses obtained by the two methods.

Keywords: Laser-guided technology; percutaneous lung biopsy (PLB); lung cancer; pulmonary nodules

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Comment on: Dai W, Wang Y, Liao J, et al. Electronic Patient-Reported Outcome-Based Symptom Management Versus Usual Care After Lung Cancer Surgery: Long-Term Results of a Multicenter, Randomized, Controlled Trial. J Clin Oncol 2024;42:2126-31.