Kentucky has one of the highest rates of lung cancer in the nation, but new advances in technology are allowing surgeons with UK HealthCare to shorten the time between diagnosis and treatment.
The new technology making this possible comes in the form of the single-port da Vinci Robotic System. Using this new tool, UK surgeons can now perform same-day biopsy and surgery for certain early-stage lung cancers.
Dr. Shari Meyerson, professor of surgery and division chief of thoracic surgery, said the new system is a huge leap in medical technology.
“It’s actually fairly amazing technology, it used to be that the robot had arms, and each arm had one tool on it, so you had to get multiple tools in there. You had to have multiple incisions. They’ve now advanced to the point that one arm can control four instruments at once. So, a camera plus three instruments all go in through that one small incision and that’s a huge technological jump,” said Meyerson.
Dr. Mansi Shah, assistant professor in the Division of Thoracic Surgery, said the nature of the small incision made by the da Vinci System makes the operation less painful for patients, who will need less recovery time as a result.
“Not everyone can go through a big operation with a big incision that would require a week plus of recovery in the hospital and weeks of recovery at home. But with a smaller incision, a single incision with less pain, we can get people up and moving faster and get them home faster and that means we can offer surgery to a broader aspect of patients,” said Shah.
Dr. Shah said a number of patients operated on using the da Vinci system didn’t require any narcotics after they left the hospital, simply opting to take Tylenol for pain. She said the robotic system allows surgeons to make an incision outside of the rib space, where there are less nerves, leading to faster recovery times and less pain.
Dr. Meyerson said the surgeons at UK HealthCare are the first in the Commonwealth, and some of the first in the country, to perform this type of single-port lung cancer treatment utilizing the da Vinci system.