UHCW pilots revolutionary Xeos Aura 10 mobile PETCT imaging unit in first for UK surgical oncology

University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust (UHCW) is piloting the Xeos Aura 10, a mobile unit that brings high-resolution molecular imaging directly to theatres for the first time. Distributed and supported by Southern Scientific in the UK, it is designed to reduce the need for further surgery or salvage radiotherapies, allowing surgeons to assess tumour margins in real-time using PETCT during surgery to improve patient outcomes. The Aura 10 is already being used successfully in hospitals in Belgium and Germany, and this is the first time this radical new technology is being implemented in the UK.

Using this precise new technology prevents the need for specimens to be taken to radiology or pathology laboratories for examination. UCHW is piloting the Aura 10 specifically for prostate and head and neck cancer and are looking to introduce it to other areas such as breast and neuroendocrine in the near future.

Consultant clinical scientist and head of nuclear medicine Lisa Rowley said, “We’re really excited about the potential the Aura 10 offers for our patients as part of their treatment pathway, and it’s been a genuine pleasure working with Southern Scientific and Xeos. Their passion and enthusiasm for the device is definitely catching and has made working on the project so much easier. We’re looking forward to analysing the results from the trial and hopefully implementing the use of the Aura 10 into standard clinical practice.

“Southern Scientific have been really supportive and worked very closely with us to set this service up, helping us to ensure we have all the right equipment to keep both patients and staff safe, and to remain legislatively compliant with the radiation regulations.”

Oludolapo Adesanya, consultant radiologist, clinical lead for nuclear medicine and trial principal investigator said, “The Aura 10 offers unparalleled clarity and precision, empowering surgeons and radiologists to make faster and accurate decisions regarding tumour margin resection while the patient in still in the operating theatre.”

The Aura 10 was first used at the hospital in October 2024 during an operation for a patient with a carcinoma of the jaw. Maxillofacial consultant Gary Walton, who is also assistant medical director for cancer at the trust, said: “It takes 10 minutes to put a specimen into the machine and we can scan it during the normal break in a procedure. It’s much quicker than the usual margin resection and it means that patients don’t need to have adjuvant treatment (such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy), which they would otherwise need.”

And Donald MacDonald, consultant urologist, who used the Aura 10 during prostatectomy procedures, said, “We are hoping that the Aura 10 will allow us to perform the minimum amount of surgery, examine the specimen whilst we’re in theatre – whilst the patient is asleep – to see if what we’ve done has been sufficient to cure the cancer. If it has, that’s brilliant, we can leave all of the adjacent structures intact. Whereas, if the imaging tells us that there is still likely to be residual disease, then we can go on and remove it.

“The Aura 10 has the potential to make this transformative technique available cheaply and routinely to radical prostatectomy patients, providing an undisputedly world-class service, unmatched in the UK.”

Lead picture: the team at Coventry take delivery of the Xeos Aura 10.

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