£3.5million expansion of robotic cancer surgery in Nottingham
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) has invested £3.5 million in two state of the art robotic surgery machines to be used for cancer surgery in Nottingham.
The expansion will see the number of robotically trained surgeons increase from 8 to 21 over the coming months and years and will enable more procedures to take place using the new machines, particularly focusing on patients who require cancer surgery. This will enable surgeons who specialise in different cancers, such as oesohageal and throat cancer, to start undertaking robotic procedures. This is in addition to the established services which include Urology, Colorectal, Gynaecology and Thoracic Surgery.Both robotic machines have arrived and staff will start their training on the new robots shortly.
Robotic surgery in operating theatres consists of a series of mechanical arms controlled by a surgeon sitting at a console on the other side of the room without needing to be at the side of the patient. The surgeon controls the mechanical arms and can view live 3-D images of the patient’s organs.
The increased capacity and number of staff trained will enable more specialties in the hospital to make use of the robots which provide surgeons with a greater range of motion and precision compared to laparoscopic surgery (keyhole surgery) and reduced risk of repetitive strain injuries. Better precision reduces operating time which means fewer complications, less blood loss and faster recovery for our patients, meaning they can return to normal life sooner.
The two new robotic surgery machines have been brought in to replace NUH’s current robotic surgery machine which is 6 years old. Thanks to this considerable investment, robotic surgery at NUH can not only continue into the future, but more patients will be able to benefit from this revolutionary type of surgery.
Ayan Banerjea, Clinical Director for Surgery at NUH said: “This investment is a great addition to surgery at the Trust. The reduced operating time, smaller incision and increased precision means there is a much lower chance of any complications. Ultimately our patients will not only have better outcomes but will be able to recover much sooner.”
Ayan continued: “The main advantage of robotic surgery is that it allows surgeons to operate through very small incisions, drastically reducing the risk of infection.”
The addition of the new robotic surgery machines means the trust will be able to perform more surgeries, with improved outcomes for patients.