A Look Inside the Mind of a Brain Surgeon

from Lehigh Valley Marketplace May 2021 issue

by Meris, Inc.

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JEAN IS KNOWN WORLDWIDE FOR HIS EXPERTISE IN COMPLEX BRAIN SURGERY.

HELPING PATIENTS VISUALIZE THEIR BRAIN

“We meet hundreds of patients and explain to them our surgical plan. That communication can be difficult at times,” Jean says. “Once we have a patient’s brain scans loaded into the augmented reality software, they have the ability to see their own anatomy to gain a better understanding.” When patients place the headset over their eyes, they are transported to a virtual replica of their own brain. This technology, called Surgical Theater®, allows them to feel as though they are flying through their own anatomy. The experience offers a visual explanation that often is easier to understand than medical terminology.

CREATING A PLAN OF ATTACK

The second benefit of Surgical Theater® is that it allows brain surgeons to create a surgery plan

by simulating different scenarios to find the best approach. “The genesis of the technology is from air fighter pilots. The founders of the company discovered they could use the same technology in the medical field,” Jean says. Just like fighter pilots, brain surgeons are able to practice unique scenarios to be fully prepared for their mission.

X-RAY VISION

By now, you are probably imagining XR as superhero powers that assist a hero in doing important work. If that image hadn’t come to mind yet, X-ray vision should seal the deal. Extended reality allows surgeons to operate with “X-ray” vision to reach their targets safely and to stay out of danger by avoiding critical “no-fly” zones in the brain. “Every patient’s problem is unique. We design the surgical approach for every operation to fit the individual’s problem,” Jean says.

ABOUT WALTER JEAN, MD

Jean joined Lehigh Valley Health Network in February. He is a board-certified neurosurgeon with expertise in complex intracranial surgery. Jean is known worldwide for his expertise in complex brain surgery. His acclaimed textbook, “Skull Base Surgery: Strategies,” is used by neurosurgeons across the globe to learn about open and endoscopic skull base surgery. As a pioneer, Jean utilizes virtual reality in neurosurgery and brings this revolutionary technology to the Lehigh Valley.

Learn more about Jean at LVHN.org/WCJean. w

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During a lifetime that stretched from 1905 to 2001, Marie Tambasco was witness to a period of history that brought astonishing changes to nearly every aspect of existence. However, this Shenandoah native was usually far too busy with her natural calling to take much note of the evolving world outside the anthracite coal-mining community in Pennsylvania’s Schuylkill County. Raising her own 12 children and caring for 5 younger siblings was a more than full-time occupation for this remarkable and resilient woman. During an interview with a Pottsville newspaper in the final year of her life, Tambasco stated a belief that it was “her God-given role in life to be a mother.” And there’s ample evidence to support that conviction. As daughter and eighth-born child Julia Tambasco McLaughlin recalls, “She was strong and jolly—and never complained.”

A MATCH MADE IN SHENANDOAH

When Marie Panzariello married at just 15 years of age—not unreasonably young in that place and time—her husband Joseph Tambasco was 21. He had arrived in the U.S. at age 16, accompanied by his father. The two planned to work a few years while staying with relatives, save money, and return to the family that remained in Italy. But Joseph chose to stay in America and never set foot in Italy again. When he began to court Marie she was not quite 14. Her mother Maria objected to Joseph’s attentions due to his reputation as an alleged “womanizer.” (Good looks and an outgoing personality are assumed to be all the fodder needed for local gossipmongers to start whispering.)

After church one Palm Sunday, Joseph presented Marie with a tiny cross adorned with two hearts he had woven from the palm leaf given to worshippers that day. An epic mother-daughter battle ensued, with Maria insisting the gift be returned and Marie refusing to follow orders. In this instance, the otherwise obedient daughter prevailed: Marie cherished the handcrafted token throughout her life—usually carried in her purse— and requested to have it placed in her casket when she died. (In an odd footnote, one of the two hearts fell off the palm leaf cross the day Joseph died in 1976 and, despite intense searching, was never found.) Fortunately, Marie’s father

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