A method for virtual endoscopy in a lumen includes acquiring from a
patient an imaging dataset exhibiting a lesion external to a lumen wall;
deriving a three-dimensional (3-D) volume of the lesion; obtaining data
on maximum bend characteristics for a given endoscope; and deriving
projection criteria, based on the 3-D volume and the maximum bend, for
projecting an endoluminal image of said lesion, indicating an optimal
biopsy insertion point.