(Joplin, MO) – Over the last five years, Freeman Health System Pulmonologist Dr. Grant Pierson has personally performed more than 1,000 bronchoscopy procedures using the revolutionary Monarch® robotic platform.
Freeman Health System remains the first and only hospital system in the region to offer Monarch® to its patients. This advanced robotic system continues to push the boundaries in the ongoing fight against lung cancer.
“It’s definitely a rare achievement, especially in the timeline we’ve done it in,” Dr. Pierson said. “Getting 1,000 cases in five years is incredible. It showcases where we’ve been and where we’re headed in terms of diagnosing cancer in our community while raising awareness.
Dr. Pierson uses the platform’s advanced tools to find and biopsy potentially cancerous nodules in hard-to-reach areas of the lungs with greater accuracy than traditional methods, such as CT scans and x-rays, previously allowed. Operated with a controller that looks like something a modern-day gamer would use, the machine allows the robotic bronchoscope to reach deep into the hard-to-see airways of the lungs while maintaining full visuals via a camera that negates all guesswork.
“With a traditional bronchoscope, trying to look at an eight-millimeter nodule in multiple airways of the lung, I would have to guess where to make turns,” said Dr. Pierson. “Monarch takes the guesswork out of bronchoscopy because I never lose sight.”
Overall, Dr. Pierson’s colleagues have performed 1,200-plus Monarch® procedures systemwide. The very first Monarch® procedure was conducted by Dr. Pierson in early 2021. By September 2025, he’d eclipsed 750 cases.
“I’m the guy who goes in there and helps get the diagnosis … and our staff has really put forth a lot of effort to achieve this milestone,” Dr. Pierson said. However, “If we didn’t have our awesome medical oncology, radiation oncology and thoracic surgery teams, we couldn’t save lives. We can diagnose, but we have to have everyone onboard and working together. Because of that, hundreds of lives have been positively impacted.
“In a sense,” he continued, “that makes me even more proud of what we’ve managed to accomplish here at Freeman.”
Lung cancer is the number one cancer killer, claiming more victims each year than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined. According to the Lung Cancer Research Foundation, an estimated 229,000 Americans will be diagnosed with lung cancer in the U.S. this year. Roughly 125,000 won’t survive. If diagnosed and treated early, however, survival rates increase dramatically. Early detection of high-risk lung cancer cases can reduce chances of death by up to 20 percent.
“Joplin is extremely lucky to have a resource like this so close to home,” said Christian Taylor with Johnson & Johnson MedTech, the company that owns Monarch®. “The ability to combine robotics, 3D scans, Cryo tissue acquisition and real-time feedback through an advanced tissue analysis—in the same room—is extremely impactful. Patients can be confident that they will get an answer and get treatment faster.”
Patients are coming to Joplin from larger metro areas in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri due to the capabilities of the Monarch® machine and Freeman Lung Institute’s talented staff, Dr. Pierson said.
“We’re proving we can shift lung cancer diagnosis back from a late stage to early stage,” Dr. Pierson said. “The earlier we can diagnose lung cancer, the easier it is to treat, which means [people] can live longer.”
For more information about Monarch® or pulmonology services at Freeman or to schedule a lung cancer screening appointment, please call Freeman Lung Institute at 417.347.8315 or please click here.
About Freeman Health System
Locally owned and nationally recognized, Freeman Health System is a not-for-profit health system serving communities across Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas through a network of hospitals, physician clinics, outpatient locations, and specialty services. The system includes Freeman Hospital West, Freeman Hospital East, Freeman Neosho Hospital, and the Freeman Health System facilities in Bentonville, Springdale, Willow Creek, and Siloam Springs. Freeman Health System also operates Ozark Center—the region’s largest provider of behavioral health services, and offers comprehensive cancer, cardiology, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, and women’s and children’s services. The system is supported by more than 7,000 employees and is the only Children’s Miracle Network Hospital in a 70-mile radius. For more information, visit freemanhealth.com.
Reference:
Kevin McClintock, Media Relations Coordinator
Freeman Health System
417.434.3458
KSMcclintock@freemanhealth.com
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