Prostate cancer treated with robotic assisted surgery has a 87% chance of recovery with no recurrence of the disease after five years. This is the finding of the first long term study of patients who have undergone surgical removals of cancerous prostates with robot assisted surgery.
Researchers in the U.S. were led by Dr Mani Menon, a pioneer in the laparoscopic treatment of prostate cancer. Dr Menon of the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit and Dr James Peabody had performed all the robot assisted surgeries in the study.
The study involved 1,384 men who had undergone robot assisted prostate removal in between September 2001 to May 2005. Average age of the patients was 60 and they has all been diagnosed with moderately aggressive prostate cancer.
The Henry Ford robot-assisted urology program uses the da Vince computer-enhanced, minimally invasive surgery system. This helps surgeons manipulate robotic arms for precise procedures through a series of small incisions and provides 3-D monitoring for the entire surgical team.