The Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in East Kent has recently celebrated an incredible milestone. Not surprisingly, they’ve already had their first successful robotic surgeries! Herne Bay patient Stanley Russell is truly making history! This made him the second person at the hospital to receive a new pioneering robotic procedure, which the NHS originally launched in London earlier this year.
On a Thursday, 68-year-old Mandy Lee had the robotic-assisted surgery. Doctors later diagnosed her with bowel cancer, and the NHS surgery to remove part of her bowel was substandard. The procedure made use of a new technology, specifically a four-armed robot, all of which were remotely controlled by surgeon Sudhaker Mangam. With this technology, surgeons are able to see a high definition, 3D view of what’s inside the patient’s body, giving them unparalleled detail and precision during surgery.
Mangam, who performed the procedure and who considers robotic surgery a significant advancement in surgical tools. This groundbreaking will have a huge impact on patient care in East Kent. He stated, “This marks a major advancement in surgical capability for east Kent patients, enabling greater precision, improved outcomes, and faster recovery times.”
Lee’s positive experience with the new robotic procedure proved reassuring. While she was apprehensive at the prospect of having robotic surgery, her burning passion to make cancer history pushed her through to continue on. “It was a bit of a scary thought, I hadn’t even considered the possibility of robotic surgery, but I just wanted the cancer gone and I wasn’t put off,” Lee remarked.
The surgical team took time to thoroughly discuss the procedure with Lee. They promised her that it would be far less painful than invasive surgery. This knowledge ended up being really important in getting her fears about the operation lifted.
Stanley Russell expressed the same kind of feelings about his experience. So when the procedure was over, he found himself very pleased with that experience. What was most surprising, he said, were the explanations provided by step-by-step medical staff. He stated, “The team explained everything really well and said it would be less painful than going through more invasive surgery, so that made sense to me.”
In the early days after surgery, the host showed impressive toughness, going home only three days after the procedure this past Sunday. That led to her feeling better each day, as she works through recovery, on the path to finding new normal.
Robotic assisted surgeries have proven successful implementations in different European countries, showing promising results. Through the use of this cutting-edge technology, local patients with QEQM will have more successful surgical outcomes. They can further expect a more comfortable post-operative course.
