Robotic prostatectomy emerging as reliable treatment for prostate cancer

Robotic prostatectomy - that is the use of a robotic arm to remove the cancerous prostate gland - is fast emerging as a reliable treatment for prostate cancer, a health expert said here Monday.

"More and more people suffering from prostate cancer are ready to undergo robotic prostatectomy because of its advantages as compared to the other previous prostatectomy procedures," Sudhir Chadda, senior urologist and chairman, Kidney Transplant Surgery, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said in a statement.

He said: "The earlier prostate cancer treatments like the open prostatectomy, involved making a major incision from the belly-button to the pubic bone. It lead to more blood loss and a longer painful recovery, but in robotic prostatectomy finely, controlled robotic instruments are used to perform the procedure and the patient can recover soon."

"In robotic prostatectomy, the surgical device is equipped with high resolution cameras which provide a 10-time magnified, three-dimensional image of the prostate and surrounding nerves and tissues," Chadda said and added that the micro-surgical instruments eliminate any chance of hand tremor and also give greater flexibility and manoeuverability.

He said that the surgery is performed with small incisions of 1-2 cm, and this radically improves post operation recovery.

"The computer-guided movements of the robotic arms also prevent any chance of damage to the nerves of the prostate gland, minimising the possibility of impotency following the procedure - a risk that is sometimes associated with traditional prostatectomy," he said.