Robot surgeon a cut above the rest

A robot surgeon has joined the operating team at University Hospital Limerick (UHL).

The first 29 patients who have undergone robotic surgery in the hospital recovered twice as fast as those who had conventional procedures.

The Da Vinci Xi robot cost €2.8m and was donated by the Midwestern Hospitals Development Trust and funded by the JP McManus Benevolent Fund.

Midwestern Hospitals Trust chairman Jim Canny said: “All patients in the mid-west requiring surgery, such as colorectal or urological, now have access to this state-of-the-art robotic technology, which means that they will have better outcomes overall.”

Post-operative recovery is twice as fast, with an average post-operative hospital stay of approximately four days.

Michael Hanrahan, a retired Aer Rianta worker from Ennis, had a tumour removed from his kidney in the first robotic operation of its kind in Ireland. It was performed by Subhasis Giri, who has conducted 20 robotic kidney cancer procedures at UHL. In most of them, he was able to preserve or save the kidney while removing the tumour, thereby potentially avoiding the need for dialysis.

Mr Hanrahan said:

“I remember seeing the robot and thinking ‘how is that going to operate on me?’ The incision was so small, it was remarkable. I was delighted with my recovery, I was back playing golf in a matter of weeks.”

Patric Salo had robotic surgery to remove a tumour performed by J Calvin Coffey, who has carried out nine intestinal surgeries to date with the robot, including operations for colon cancer, cancer of the rectum, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease.

Mr Salo said: “They removed 10cm of my colon, including the tumour and the lymph nodes around the area. During the operation, I lost just 70ml of blood. I was also struck by the size of my scars. I have no modelling aspirations, but thanks to the technology, the scars I have are really small.”

Prof Coffey said: “Now, for the first time, it is available to public patients in the Mid-West for colorectal and renal or urologic cases.

“The dual console will allow not one, but two surgeons to operate simultaneously, ensuring optimal decision-making and precision for each individual patient; the expertise is doubled.

“We have conducted 29 cases to date in UHL, predominantly for colon, rectal, and kidney cases, with hugely encouraging results and a high level of patient satisfaction.”

UL Hospitals Group chief executive Colette Cowan said, on average, three robotic surgeries are conducted weekly and all patients have access to the surgery if referred by their GP.