Intelligent soft opto-magnetic robot for minimally invasive interventional therapy

Minimally invasive interventions (MII) have revolutionized medical treatment by reducing patient trauma, speeding recovery, and improving surgical outcomes. However, conventional MII is often hindered by challenges such as restricted tactile feedback in confined spaces, reliance on the surgeon's manual dexterity, and dependence on radiation-based imaging. The development of small-scale, soft robots capable of performing MII via remote control, while integrating tactile perception, real-time monitoring, and therapeutic delivery, holds immense potential to overcome these barriers and enhance the precision, safety, and effectiveness of medical procedures, but has yet to be achieved. Here, we introduce an intelligent soft opto-magnetic (iSOM) robot that integrates skin-mimic tactile sensing, photothermal ablation, and magnetic actuation at the millimeter scale. The iSOM robot features a soft polymer sheath housing multimodal optical fibers (MMFs) for delivering sensing and therapeutic light, a magnetic-responsive leading section for active steering and navigation, and a hemispherical tip for tactile perception and photothermal ablation. Powered by magnetic fields and laser light, the robot can navigate confined anatomical spaces within the body to deliver targeted ablation therapy, while simultaneously providing real-time monitoring of both navigation and therapeutic processes, ensuring high accuracy and safety. As proof of concept, we demonstrated the robot’s capabilities for real-time tracked photothermal ablation ex vivo, and navigation through complex vasculature for targeted cardiac ablation in cardiovascular phantoms, offering new prospects for targeted therapeutic delivery via MII.