Darpan News Service
Chandigarh, 22 December: Dr Naveen Kalra, Professor, Department of Radiodiagnosis was awarded a short term Medical Applied Research and Practice Fellowship by the French Institute in India through the Embassy of France in December 2022. Under this fellowship, Dr Kalra was invited for a short stay research trip to visit the world-famous Interventional Oncology facility at the Gustave Roussy Institute of Oncology at Paris in December this year. This programme aimed at promoting bilateral exchange for practioners involved in innovative medical approaches.
Interventional Oncology is an evolving sub-specialty of radiology but is being routinely practiced at PGIMER for a very long time said Prof. M.S.Sandhu, Head, Department of Radiodiagnosis. This research visit of Dr Kalra is likely to open new opportunities of interactions and collaborative research projects between the World famous and fabled Gustave Roussy Institute of Oncology and PGIMER, said Prof. Sandhu.
In interventional oncology, early and intermediate stage cancers are diagnosed and treated using image-guidance and minimally invasive techniques. Tissue samples of tumorous tissue are obtained using ultrasound or CT-guidance. Probes are placed accurately into the tumor to ablate them (burn them or freeze them) and catheters are positioned into the artery feeding the tumor via the vessel route from the groin to deliver chemotherapeutic drugs using imaging tools. The department of Radiodiagnosis at PGIMER has all the modalities required for the ablation of cancers and was the first in the country to acquire the Nanoknife (irreversible electroporation machine) and the cryoablation machine. Dr Kalra has been a pioneer and is actively involved in establishing these new and highly specialized techniques in the Institute, and in the country.