Cancer patients at Ipswich Hospital can now benefit from fewer complications and a faster recovery following surgery thanks to the introduction of state-of-the-art robotic technology.
East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT) has introduced a second £2.5m DaVinci Xi surgical robot at Ipswich. It comes after ESNEFT’s first machine was successfully rolled out to Colchester Hospital around 18 months ago.
The technology allows surgeons to complete complex cancer operations using minimally-invasive keyhole surgery. As a result, patients experience very little post-operative pain and are less likely to develop complications such as infections, while many are also able to return home more quickly.
To operate using the robot, the surgeon sits in the same room as the patient and will look through an eye piece while controlling the machine’s four arms from a console. This allows them to move tissue or make cuts remotely with incredible accuracy.
The Ipswich machine will initially be used for bowel cancer cases, but will expand to treat gynaecological cancers within the next few months after additional surgeons have completed their training.
Colorectal surgeon Arshad Malik (pictured below with the robot), who has already performed several operations in Colchester, has carried out three procedures in Ipswich following the launch of the service at the start of September.
He said: “We are delighted that robotic technology has now been introduced at Ipswich following an extremely successful launch in Colchester.
“The robot allows surgeons to carry out complex operations using a camera and small incisions which are each less than one centimetre long. As a result, patients have less pain and recover sooner, while one of our first patients was able to return home after just 17 hours, which is amazing.
“As the robot is so precise, we are able to remove an additional layer of lymph nodes and tissues around the cancerous tissues, in turn improving patient outcomes and survival rates for colonic cancer compared to traditional surgery. It is also incredibly stable, which makes complex surgery easier and means the surgeon is less tired after a long operation.
“Robotic surgery is set to revolutionise surgical care within next couple of decades, and it’s fantastic that ESNEFT is at the forefront of those advances. It is also really exciting for the surgical team to be part of this innovation, which will help us continue providing the highest quality care for our cancer patients which is on a par with centres of excellence in colorectal surgery.”
ESNEFT’s first Davinci Xi was introduced in Colchester in September 2020 and has since been used to carry out more than 300 minimally-invasive colon, rectal and gynaecological cancer operations, as well as procedures for endometriosis. Feedback from patients who have been treated using the robot has also been extremely positive.
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