August 28, 2024

A digital twin (DT) is a virtual counterpart of a real patient with predictive and testing capability through realistic simulation, modeling, and visualization. A digital model of the real patient recapitulates the physical body of the patient and predicts the future outcome including tissue deformation via modeling the organs and physiology. Digital twin is a new concept in medicine, which allows virtual interactions with the body before real interventions and can thus improve surgical precision. The research grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) will allow the investigators to develop a digital twin augmented reality (DTAR) platform for the operating room (OR) of the future. A digital twin will be synchronized dynamically with the real patient via feedback mechanisms and will guide the surgeon to the next steps. The DTAR technology can provide a powerful tool for many surgical applications.