Trust hosts second robotic surgery masterclass

On Thursday 2nd and Friday 3rd February the Trust will be holding its second international robotic symposium. Over the two days consultants and trainees from the UK and Europe will be learning and improving their robotic surgical techniques. The attendees will also will be given the opportunity to view live surgery via a link-up from the operating theatre to the lecture theatre at the Post Graduate Centre, Wexham Park Hospital over the hospital’s iIntranet.

Wexham Park’s Department of Urology has in addition arranged for Professor Craig Rogers from Detroit, one of the world’s leading experts in robotic renal surgery to come and demonstrate some of the advanced techniques. Wexham Park will shortly be taking delivery of the latest da Vinci Si robot and thanks to the generosity of one of it’s patients, will have the most advanced system for robotic renal surgery in the UK. The charitable donation has purchased the UK’s first robotic ultrasound system and is now benefitting patients at Wexham Park.

Surgeons from all over Europe are taking part in this interactive masterclass which will give them the opportunity to learn step by step the surgical techniques used for robotic prostatectomy, the surgical procedure to remove the prostate gland via minimally-invasive robotic surgery typically performed to remove a cancerous prostate gland and its surrounding areas and robotic partial nephrectomy, the surgical procedure to remove the cancerous part of the kidney while preserving the normal and unaffected portion of the kidney, preventing the loss of the entire kidney.

Mr Omer Karim and Mr Marc Laniado, Consultant Urologists for the Trust said, “We are very pleased to be able to host our second robotic symposium following the success of our first event last year. The Trust management has been very supportive in enabling Wexham to acquire the most advanced da Vinci robotic system in the UK. It is a real honour for Wexham that such eminent European surgeons recognise this hospital as one of the leading centres in the UK for robotic assisted surgery and have helped us host the largest UK masterclass in prostate and kidney cancer surgery.”

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Notes

Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust was the first District General Hospital in the country to use the da Vinci Surgical System.

The da Vinci robot cannot replace the skills of a surgeon. It enables the surgeon to be more precise, advancing their technique and enhancing their ability to perform complex, minimally invasive surgery. This robotic technology is controlled completely by the surgeon, and replicates their movements exactly. The system cannot be programmed, or make decisions on its own.

The benefits of da Vinci robotic prostate surgery are excellent cancer control, improved and early return of sexual function and continence, and improved results over traditional treatments. Additionally, as it is minimally invasive there is usually significantly less pain, less blood loss, less scarring and reduced trauma to the body

The da Vinci robot enables the surgeon to be more precise, advancing their technique and enhancing their ability to perform complex, minimally invasive surgery. This robotic technology is controlled completely by the surgeon, and replicates their movements exactly. The system cannot be programmed, or make decisions on its own. It can only perform manoeuvres with the surgeon’s input.

Mr Omer Karim is one of the few formally trained robotic surgeons in the UK and has performed hundreds of robotic prostatectomies allowing men to resume normal lives despite having had prostate cancer. He teaches robotic surgery to other surgeons all over the UK wishing to learn the technique. He is the lead in Prostate Cancer for east Berkshire and is also a Consultant at Imperial College Health Care (St Mary's Hospital, Paddington) He has been treating men with prostate cancer for over 20 years and performed prostate research at the John Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, USA. He is a strong believer in research and continues to evaluate and develop new technologies to help men with prostate cancer. In 2010 Mr Karim was voted as one of the UK’s top ten urologists by peers in a survey carried out by the Daily Mail.

Mr Marc Laniado has been performing laparoscopic surgery for kidney and prostate disease after a period at the Cleveland Clinic, USA, in the Minimally Invasive Surgery Unit. Since then, he has taken up robotic surgery to enhance the results and is now performing robotic surgery regularly. He has been strong advocate for the use of technology, risk assessment systems and the use of the most modern equipment available to select men who are likely to benefit from an early diagnosis of prostate cancer. For such men, he offers the best treatment available so that they can return to normal activities as before. He performed many years of research in prostate cancer and continues to do so and is actively involved in the training of other consultants