A 56-year-old male patient complained for red right blood in his stools and colonoscopy revealed a rectal cancer 6 centimeters above the anal verge. Preoperative tumor staging confirmed there was benefit for neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy. The patient had 3 options:
- Open surgery with high chance of permanent end colostomy
- Laparoscopic surgery
- Robotic Surgery, which was our choice of treatment
6 weeks after induction of neoadjuvant therapy the tumor had downstaged properly and the patient was scheduled for a robotic operation with intend to cure.
The patient underwent a robotic ultra-low anterior resection with primary anastomosis. The operation consists of removing the lower part of the rectum and restoring the continuity of the bowel. The cornerstone of the treatment is to sufficiently remove the mesorectum and perform a complete total mesorectal excision, meaning to remove all the surrounding fat of the rectum which included the lymph nodes and vessels. By properly removing the mesorectum we succeed in greatly reducing the risk of local recurrence.
The operation was carried out with the da Vinci Xi robotic platform in Athens Medical Center and the outcomes were excellent.
Blood loss was minimal and post-operative recovery was remarkable. In the first two post-operative days the patient’s bowel started moving and he was physically active.
The immediate recovery and return to daily routine after robotic operations in addition to our vast experience proves that this technology maximizes benefits and advantages with the less possible stress for the patients.
Advantages
Robotic operations are usually bloodless, with low post-operative pain and quick recovery. This minimizes the risk of post-operative complications such as blood clots causing pulmonary embolism or respiratory and urinary infections.
Also, robotic surgery has less hospital stay compared to conventional techniques. As far as rectal cancer operations are concerned, robotic technology allows for faster induction of adjuvant chemotherapy if needed compared to open surgery which requires triple that delay.
In the past years, all conferences and scientific meetings are focusing on minimally invasive techniques to address cancer cases. Laparoscopy used to be the choice of treatment in the past and robotic approach nowadays.
Robotic surgery confers overall the most benefits for the patient with better outcomes and less complications and this is the reason why patients trust me and my surgical team in Athens Medical Center for their oncologic surgical treatment.
