By Anders Anglesey
Surgeons will observe a pioneering robotic operation tomorrow that has helped sufferers of prostate cancer recover more quickly after surgery.
The robot-assisted procedure allows surgeons to use finer instruments, in a
The robot-assisted procedure has seen the number of prostate cancer operations rise from 44 to 150 per year since it was introduced in 2012.
more precise manner that causes less damage and blood loss to the body, which can lead to a speedier recovery for the patient.
Bradford Teaching Hospitals’ consultant urological surgeon, Mr Sanjai Addla, who is hosting the event, wants surgeons to improve upon their service by taking the techniques they observe at Bradford back to their hospitals.
“We, as surgeons, will be able to pick up new techniques by watching him perform at close hand.
“This means we can then bring them back to our own hospitals and improve the service that we offer patients even more.”
During an operation the surgeon sits down by a console, equipped with a 3D view of the surgical area, where the technology translates their hand movements into more honed and delicate actions that are then carried out by the machine.
And even though the computer system is designed to pick up hand movements it is also designed to ignore any of a surgeon’s trembles, if it is picked up by the machine.
The surgeons will arrive at Bradford Royal Infirmary tomorrow morning to observe the operation on a patient with locally-advanced prostate cancer.
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