This robotic rectum lets doctors get a feel for prostate exa

Prostate exams are never going to be the most - how can we put this? - pleasantexperience, but they can help save lives through the early detection of prostate cancer, if the doctor knows what they're looking for.

To make sure that happens, researchers in the UK have just unveiled a robotic rectum that helps doctors and nurses get a thorough understanding of what healthy and abnormal rectums feel like, as well as allowing them to work on their technique. The picture above really says it all.

As silly as it might seem, the invention is actually pretty genius. It uses robotic arms to apply pressure to a silicon rectum, so that trainee doctors or nurses can get an accurate sense of the feel and shape of a rectum.

A 3D model of the internal organs is also displayed on a computer screen, so the user can see what they're feeling, through what's known as haptic technology, which involves interacting with computers through touch.

The robot can be programmed to have a different anatomical scenario each time, such as an enlarged prostate or perhaps a developing tumour.

Created by researchers at Imperial College London, the device was unveiled this week at the Eurohaptics conference, and the team is now adapting the robot so that it can also be used to train for gynaecological exams.