When we talk about robots, you naturally think of humanoid robots that you have seen on the screen.

But many robots are more like machines that can operate independently, especially in the field of medicine. And they are likely to have a major impact on our lives.

For example, a 3D printing robot called Stormram 4 can perform biopsies, that is, remove a cell tissue from human skin for examination. The design was designed to treat women's common cancer, breast cancer.

The key difference is that it can be performed in an MRI scanner rather than during an ultrasound or breast X scan. According to researcher Fran oise Siepel C robot, the robot has compared to those used in the imaging accuracy of breast cancer imaging techniques in the diagnosis of higher.

Of course, not only you, but it sounds good to me. Held at the end of June the British robotics week, this robot to victory in the challenge and surgical robot. But I recently used ultrasound guided breast biopsy, rethink the application of robot in the medical aspects of this experience so that I had to, because in order to improve the diagnostic technology, the robot may ignore a key factor.

Human factor

First of all, breast biopsy is a very serious matter. Before you have a biopsy, the doctor usually checks you out to make sure you're not guessing. The biopsy will cause the patient to be very worried about the operation because the patient does not know what the outcome will be.

Secondly, in the diagnosis process, although I'm not afraid of injection, but the biopsy needle is really big. It is not like the needle used in normal injections. I think if it scares me, then it scares people too.

I didn't dare to see the needle puncture my skin, but thanks to the radiologist, I had the courage to see it on the ultrasound screen. He took what we were in, where he told me all the reasons and acupuncture treatment. He explained to me every step of the process and explained when the needle would take the sample and how I would feel when taking the sample.

That's why I have reservations about the Stormram 4 robot. Someone to share with me and reveal to me the whole process will ease my anxiety.

Some women are afraid of injections, and some women are claustrophobic and don't like mri. In addition, fear of accepting unknown diagnosis results, so they may show extreme anxiety.

When I told Siepel about my worries, she said, "we fully understand that the biopsy is a potentially painful experience because the diagnosis is uncertain before the unknown.". Therefore, during an MRI, the radiologist will interpret the process with an audio link to the patient."

In addition, doctors recommend narcotics.

Even if the doctor is not with you, it is very reassuring to hear a radiologist speak in your ear. If I have other options and these two options can provide the correct results, I'd prefer to have an ultrasound guided X ray examination, so that the doctor will be able to stay with me.

But that's the problem - the results they provide are different. Compared with ultrasound, MRI can locate the needle more precisely.

An assistant, not an alternative

As robots play a more and more important role in modern medicine, the interaction between patients and robots is very important. Wachter data ethics researcher Sandra Alan Turing Institute said: "through educational activities to ethical values into the whole process of the research, this is the robot experts are working to solve things, which makes me feel at ease."

"I talked to a lot of people in this field, and they became increasingly aware of the meaning of ethics in their work," she said. This mode of thinking is changing to ethics. All jobs are more or less ethical, and robot learning and robotics in the natural health care system are no exception."

The primary role of robots in modern medicine is to assist rather than replace doctors; in other words, they enhance the capabilities of doctors. "Robotics can help reduce the number of surgeries throughout the procedure and improve safety, but it will always take someone to monitor the process," Wachter said."

Perhaps in the future, as robots become more common in surgery or other medical procedures, there will be trade-offs between the treatment process and the outcome, but we want both to achieve the greatest degree of optimization.

Wachter said: "if we pay enough attention to ethical concepts, then it will have a great impact on medical technology."."