LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Doctors have removed a brain tumor to protect the sight of a man with the world's first live artificial intelligence-assisted brain surgery.
The operation was carried out at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London as part of a clinical trial using AI technology developed in-house at UCLH.
Rhys Hibbert, aged 48 from Bedfordshire, is the first patient to have undergone such a surgery. Without surgery, Rhys' tumor would have continued to threaten his sight and could ultimately have led to blindness.
Neurosurgeons at NHNN successfully removed the tumor using this most-modern technology and protected his vision.
During the operation, the AI analysed the live surgical video feed in real time, rather than using pre-surgery scans, to help the surgical team make more precise decisions by highlighting critical structures at the base of the brain.
In this part of the brain, the pituitary gland (the size of a marble), blood vessels and nerves controlling vision are tightly packed together, and going a millimeter wrong can make a critical difference and lead to death, blindness or stroke. The AI supported the surgical team helping identify risky areas to avoid while removing as much tumor as safely possible. It also has the potential to track surgical instruments and instrument-tissue interactions, with the aim of supporting surgeons during complex procedures and providing feedback.
While the surgeon remained in full control, the AI system analysed live camera footage during the procedure, helping identify critical structures such as nerves and blood vessels.
'The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery was founded in 1859. and was the world's first dedicated neurosurgical hospital. So to me, it seems very fitting that the same hospital should also be the world's first to carry out an AI-assisted neurosurgery,' said Rhys, a customer services manager and active community volunteer.
The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery is part of the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Hani Marcus, consultant neurosurgeon at the NHNN, and a professor of neurosurgery at the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, performed this first AI assisted surgery alongside Danyal Khan, the surgical resident leading the work.
Hani said: 'Huge thanks to the trial participants and to the team committed to improving patient outcomes by taking this important first step globally and using UK homegrown AI to help reduce risk during these delicate surgeries.'
The AI system was developed at the UCL Hawkes Institute, a multidisciplinary research group at UCL focused on advancing healthcare technologies.
Researchers trained and evaluated the system using a large collection of annotated endoscopic pituitary surgery videos from previous operations. The technology has previously been evaluated and used as a training tool for surgeons carrying out this procedure.
The trial was funded by NIHR and Google.
Rhys's condition was discovered by chance in December 2024 when he collapsed during a walk and suffered a seizure. Following hospital tests, doctors discovered a tumor measuring around 11 millimeters in his pituitary gland.
Rhys said that upon waking from surgery, his vision had dramatically improved.
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