THE FIRST patient ever to undergo robotic surgery at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust has returned to thank surgeons for giving him a decade of extra life – on the ten-year anniversary of the procedures being introduced.
Michael Friend, who had a prostatectomy in February 2014, was among more than 100 delegates, including patients and surgeons and clinicians from across the country, who gathered at University Hospital Coventry for a conference celebrating 10 years of excellence in robotic surgery.
“I would like to thank the whole staff for giving me an extra 10 years of life – and still counting,” said Michael, from Coventry, who attended the event with his wife Marina.
“It’s absolutely wonderful,” he added. “I’m as fit now as I’ve ever been. I’m really enjoying life and it’s brilliant.”
Michael was reunited with consultant urological surgeon Donald MacDonald who said there would be no robotics programme at UHCW if it wasn’t for patients like him who had been generous in agreeing to undergo robotic surgery when it first started.
Over the past decade, thousands of patients like Michael have benefited from robotic surgery thanks to the Trust’s vision to invest in the latest technology for carrying out keyhole operations.
Consultant surgeon Jawad Ahmad, who chaired the conference, said: “10 years ago, the Trust had the vision and foresight to buy this equipment, and it has paid dividends over the years.
“We routinely operate on cancer and benign disease of the colon, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, kidneys, prostate, bladder, uterus, thorax, complex hernias and the head and neck.
“We are now a multi-disciplinary centre of excellence, benefiting thousands of patients. This conference showcased our journey from the first case in 2014 to where we are today – a national and international leader in robotic surgery.”
Today, UHCW has 20 trained surgeons and six proctors – experts who train senior surgeons in how to do robotic surgery – in hepatobiliary and pancreatic, colorectal, gynaecology, thoracic, ENT and urology.
They have trained teams in robotic surgery from all over the UK and the rest of the world. This year alone, the team will complete more than 1,000 robotic procedures.
During the two-day conference, led by the Centre of Excellence Group for Robotic Surgery, delegates heard presentations from surgeons and took part in sessions exploring aspects of robotic surgery, including best practice and research.
They were also given the opportunity to view live surgery from an operating theatre and try out a Da Vinci Xi robot which was on display.
