Among lung biopsy procedures in the U.S., robotically assisted bronchoscopy is a small but fast-growing market, where Intuitive Surgical’s Ion system also competes.

Lung cancer has one of the lowest five-year survival rates because it is often diagnosed at a late stage. If caught early, however, a patient’s chance of survival increases significantly.

Almost half of early-stage lesions are in the lung’s peripheral areas, which are hard to reach with traditional bronchoscopy, J&J said. The Monarch system is designed to help surgeons reach further into the lungs to biopsy nodules.