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It almost sounds like an episode of the old cartoon which was set in the the year 2062, The Jetsons. Imagine Rosie the Robot performing a prostrate operation on George. Well, robotic surgery for prostate cancer is now a reality. At the least, it is exactly what they are calling it, however it is not exactly what it sounds like. The process is done by a doctor operating a remote controlled device.

It’s a minimally invasive option to traditional prostate surgery. It employs the use an advanced, upgraded laparoscopic device. Patients generally give the procedure positive feedback. This is a trend you can actually bet you will see more of.

You may be amazed to learn that robotic assisted surgery is hardly a new phenomenon. The truth is, it’s not unusual for a physician to have performed thousands of these operations, starting from the 1990′s. (The first robotic assisted operation was in 1985.)

The actual machinery is named the da Vinci surgical system. It allows the prostate to be operated on, or removed without having to open the patient’s body, like most surgeries. Four small holes are created that enable tiny instruments to enter and do the work.

The sturdiest human hand has micro tremors, but the da Vinci system compensates, creating tremor free execution. Combined with the better than naked eye vantage point of the camera, plus the precision tools, tissue from nearby areas is left unmolested.

“The bloodless prostrate surgery,” is exactly what this is at times referred to, because of the minimal blood loss. Patients report much less overall hurting than would be expected in a regular operation, and the amount of time to get back to normal life is also significantly accelerated.

Other patient-pleasing advantages of this procedure, over the open prostate surgery, is the usual ugly scar is not a factor. You’ll find just four little, round pocks. The typical method has a some rather displeasing side effects that the newer surgery doesn’t induce. There’s no mystery as to the reason why non-surgical procedures consistently receive more positive patient feedback.

To give you an idea of how less invasive the robotic operation is, it isn’t uncommon for patients to walk out several hours after the procedure was performed. Most patients are able to leave the hospital the next day.

Robotic surgery for prostate cancer isn’t the only surgery of its kind. You’ll find similar operations done within the fields of; General surgery, Cardiothoracic, Cardiology, Electrophysiology, Gastrointestinal, Gynecology, Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pediatrics and Urology.

So what about Rosie the Robot? Is she ever going to get a chance to perform surgery? If you look at all the advancements which have been made in your lifetime alone, it may be wise not to bet against her. Just a handful of years ago, May, 2006, a robotic system that is now called, “the first artificial intelligence doctor,” performed a surgery, under its own control, on a guy in his mid 30′s who had a case of heart arrhythmia.

The designer of the robot said that because of the ten thousand similar operations it had in its database, it was more than qualified to do the job. The truth is, the outcome was rated better than if the surgery have been done by “the average surgeon”. The designer continued to predict that fifty percent of all surgeries within ten to fifteen years, is going to be performed by robotic units under their own control.

To learn more about Prostate Cancer, please visit http://www.prostate-cancer-blog.org

Rosie the Robot, from the old cartoon, set in the future, The Jetsons, was (thankfully) never asked to give a robotic surgery for prostate cancer to Little Elroy. Would you believe that in real life that is happening now? Once you get passed the headlines, you realize it’s not as outlandish as it seems. The doctor works with high tech machinery to aid him with the surgery.

Non-robotic prostate surgery is a significantly more invasive operation. Patients usually rate their experience with the robotic prostate procedure favorably. You can expect to see a lot more of these procedures.

You may be surprised to learn that robotic assisted surgery is hardly a new phenomenon. In fact, it’s not unusual for a surgeon to have performed thousands of these operations, starting in the 1990′s. (The earliest robotic assisted operation was in 1985.)

The robot’s name is the da Vinci system. It is able to get the job done without the need to cut open the patient, as is protocol in most operations. Instead, four rather small holes are made, allowing small tooled probes and a camera to go in and operate.

The sturdiest human hand has micro tremors, but the da Vinci system compensates, creating tremor free execution. Combined with the better than naked eye vantage point of the camera, and the precision tools, tissue from nearby areas is left unmolested.

The amount of blood that is lost in this procedure is so much less than normal, the operation has been referred by some people as, “the bloodless prostate surgery.” There are similar improvements in recuperation time and discomfort levels.

Other patient-pleasing benefits of this procedure, over the open prostate surgery, is the usual ugly scar is not a factor. There are only four little, round pocks. The normal method has a some rather displeasing side effects that the newer surgery doesn’t induce. There’s no mystery as to why minimally invasive procedures consistently receive more positive patient feedback.

Here is something you would not expect to see from patients of the traditional, open prostate procedure: Some patients literally walk out within hours. Most patients are home within 24 hours.

Robotic surgery for prostate cancer is not the only surgery of its kind. There are similar operations done in the fields of; General surgery, Cardiothoracic, Cardiology, Electrophysiology, Gastrointestinal, Gynecology, Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pediatrics and Urology.

So what about Rosie the Robot? Is she ever going to get a chance to perform surgery? If you look at all the advancements that have been made in your lifetime alone, it might be wise not to bet against her. Just a handful of years ago, May, 2006, a robotic system that is now known as, “the first artificial intelligence doctor, ” performed a surgery, under its own control, on a guy in his mid 30′s who had a case of heart arrythmia.

The surgery was rated to have a better outcome than most human surgeons. The designer said that due to the database of ten thousand similar surgeries it had to learn from, it was more than prepared for the job. Indeed, the designer predicts that within the next ten to fifteen years, half of surgeries will be done by unassisted robots.

To learn more about Prostate Cancer, please visit http://www.prostate-cancer-blog.org