The Robotic Surgeon Blog

  • Swiss study shows survival advantage for surgery over radiation therapy for prostate cancer

    Prostate Cancer: Surgery Best Option? Men who choose surgery for early prostate cancer are more likely to be alive 10 years later than men who opt for other treatments, a Swiss study shows. “If you look not only at this study but at the studies we brought out in the last three or four years,…

  • Robotic radical cystectectomy for bladder cancer

    UroToday – Robotic vs Open Radical Cystectomy: Prospective Comparison of Perioperative Outcomes and Pathological Measures of Early Oncological Efficacy – Abstract Robotic-assisted RC appears to offer some operative and perioperative benefits compared with the open approach without compromising pathological measures of early oncological efficacy, such as lymph node yield and margin status. Larger, randomized studies…

  • Experience matters for prostate cancer surgery

    Study tracks ‘learning curve’ in prostate surgery – CNN.com In this study, experience was measured not by age or years as a surgeon but by the number of times doctors performed this operation. “Advice for patients is to try to seek out experienced surgeons, and they’re likely to be ones who specialize in the procedure,”…

  • Robotic Whipple performed in the midwest

    UIC News Release A surgical team led by Dr. Pier Cristoforo Giulianotti, chief of the division of minimally invasive, general and robotic surgery at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago, has performed the first fully robotic Whipple procedure in the Midwest. The operation, also called a pancreaticoduodenectomy, is the most common surgical treatment…

  • HIFU study for prostate cancer

    UroToday – High Intensity Focused Ultrasound Therapy for Clinically Localized Prostate Cancer: Efficacy and Morbidity of the Minimally Invasive Procedure I am not personally that impressed with HIFU from what I have been reading and from my research at Indiana. This series shows a relatively high failure rate of almost 30% and over 30% of…

  • PSA, free PSA, and the impact of intercourse on PSA

    There was a good question asked on a prior entry: Robotic Surgery Blog: Is Prostate Cancer Transmissible?: “Would you please comment on whether there is a connection between sexual activity and elevated PSA. Also, why would test results given to a patient not break down PSA into free and that with protein. Thank you.” PSA…

  • Us Too Newsletter for June

    Us Too! Prostate Cancer Education and Support – HotSheets #Doc Moyad’s What Works and What is Worthless Column—Provenge� # Cell Genesis Reports Phase II Results with GVAX Immunotherapy # A Survivor Reviews the 2007 ASCO Prostate Cancer Symposium The robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy is rapidly becoming the “standard of care” for those who choose surgery. IMRT…

  • Laparoscopy for BPH therapy

    Lap technique may play a role in treating BPH – UrologyTimes Berlin—A laparoscopic preperitoneal approach cannot only serve as a teaching platform for laparoscopic skills for surgeons, but it also demonstrates reproducible outcomes in the treatment of BPH, according to Belgian researchers who presented their results at the European Association of Urology annual congress here.…

  • A recipe for reducing your risk of getting prostate cancer or lowering your risk of a recurrenc

    Dietary changes may reduce prostate cancer risk, raise PSADT – Expert recommends ‘active holistic surveillance,’ including low-fat diet, supplements – UrologyTimes For patients at low risk for developing the disease, Dr. Katz recommended using the term “active holistic surveillance” instead of “watchful waiting.” This involves instructing patients to adhere to the following dietary modifications: *…