Made-in-Montreal device uses AI to treat brain cancer and extend patients’ lives

SENTRY, developed in Montreal, is a handheld device used during surgery that differentiates cancerous tissue from healthy tissue.

Peter Ross was given 14 months to live when doctors found a tumour in his brain almost four years ago. Now, he and his wife are getting ready to become grandparents.

He says his second chance at life is all thanks to a surgical device, made-in-Montreal, that uses artificial intelligence (AI).

“It’s given me, the rest of my life,” said Ross.

“I keep pinching myself. Wow. He’s still here. He’s still here. When the alternative is that he’s not. So whatever happens, is, you know, we’re grateful,” said his wife Sandrine Menard.

Ross was referred to Dr. Kevin Petrecca at the Montreal Neuro.

The surgeon is the co-founder of SENTRY, a handheld device used during surgery that differentiates cancerous tissue from healthy tissue.

He said with SENTRY, “98.7 per cent of the time, if it says it’s tumor, it’s tumor.”

“And, equally or maybe even more importantly, if it says normal brain, it’s normal brain 100 per cent of the time,” he added.

Petrecca says cancer is not visible to the naked eye or any other technology.

So, this tool allows surgeons to go beyond what was previously possible and remove more cancer than ever before.

“You make contact with the spot, and you will get feedback within less than three seconds if it contains tumor cells or not,” said Petrecca.

According to him, using this device during surgery can extend a patients life two to five times longer than expected.

It’s been most commonly tested during brain surgery, but can also be used to detect cancer in other parts of the body like the breast and lungs.

Hundreds of patients have been involved in clinical trials, including Ross.

“I take every extra day that’s given to me to go out and walk, and just, you know, enjoy, life because I owe that to this surgery,” he said.

The next step for SENTRY is to be FDA approved — a pivotal trial is scheduled for May.

Ross hopes after that, the medical advancement will help more patients live to experience precious milestones.