A robotic surgical procedure can remove the type of throat cancer Michael Douglas suffers from without breaking the jaw or making external cuts, reducing the patient's risk of disfigurement and speeding his or her recovery.
Surgery for many throat cancers has typically involved breaking the jaw and opening the face like a book to reach the tumors. But the FDA-approved da Vinci robotic surgical system, which costs nearly $2 million and is more commonly used for prostate and gynecological procedures, allows physicians to remove cancerous tumors by maneuvering the robot's pencil-thin arms down the patient's throat. The robot uses pincers to cut, cauterize and grab tissue, the Indianapolis Star reports.
"It doesn't involve nearly the trauma to the surrounding tissue and for many select tumors in this area, it allows for complete removal with negative margins often without a tracheotomy and without a feeding tube," Dr. Tod Huntley told WISH TV 8.
Huntley and partner Dr. Ed Krowiak are the first physicians in the state -- and among only a few physicians in the country -- trained to remove throat cancers using the da Vinci robot. The result has been shorter stays for his throat cancer patients at Indianapolis-based St. Vincent Hospital's Center for Ear, Nose, Throat and Allergy, where patients are discharged in less than five days, compared with stays that are twice as long or more for patients who undergo the more traditional surgery.
"This truly is a paradigm shift in the way we treat patients," Huntley said.
To learn more:
- see the St. Vincent press release
- read the Indianapolis Star story
- read this Star-Telegram article
- here's the WISH TV8 story
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