Carlos Vega García (left) and Javier Santana Núñez (right) during their visit to Karolinska University Hospital.
Researchers Javier Santana Núñez (FIISC) and Carlos Vega García (ULPGC) travelled around 4,300 kilometres from Gran Canaria to Stockholm to install the STRATUM Intraoperative Acquisition System (SIAS) at Karolinska University Hospital (KUH) as part of the Region of Stockholm (RS) partner. The visit brings the project’s hyperspectral imaging technology for brain tumour surgery research to the third participating hospital, incorporating all improvements developed from previous prototypes.
Manufactured by OPTOMIC in Madrid, the equipment was shipped to the hospital in separate components ahead of the visit. The trip focused on installing a platform that combines a surgical microscope, specialised illumination and several imaging sensors.
Seeing beyond a conventional colour image
A conventional colour camera records red, green and blue information. SIAS adds hyperspectral imaging, capturing the surgical field across 109 spectral bands from 460 to 1,000 nanometres, spanning visible and near-infrared light. This provides a more detailed record of how tissue responds to light at different wavelengths, offering information for research into distinguishing brain tumour tissue from surrounding tissue. The system acquires these images without touching the tissue and without requiring dyes or fluorescent labels. Its long-term aim is to support real-time tumour delineation during surgery.
A coordinated view of the surgical field
SIAS is built around an OPTOMIC OP-C16 microscope and an independent narrow-band illumination module. A two-metre liquid light guide connects the two, carrying light to the microscope. The module illuminates the surgical field at successive wavelengths, while a high-resolution camera captures the corresponding images to build a hyperspectral dataset.
Equipment delivered to the hospital in separate components (left) and the assembled SIAS platform (right).
Connecting engineering and clinical research
The visit connects the engineering work behind STRATUM with the clinical environment in which the technology is intended to be used. Installing SIAS at Karolinska University Hospital is a practical step towards studying how richer imaging information could help researchers develop tools to support neurosurgeons in identifying tumour boundaries.
