Robotics Changing Dimension Of Surgery

After a 5 hour-long robotics surgery, surgeons claim to remove one of the largest retrosternal Thyroid Gland in India at a private hospital in Delhi. 

The tumour was found to be in the anterior mediastinum within the chest and was advised to be removed by open chest surgery. The specialists removed 12x10 cm thyroid tumour within the thoracic cavity with the help of robotic surgery.  

“It was necessary to remove the tumour as it was compressing the windpipe and had completely involved the vein of the left upper limb with multiple large collaterals over the tumour,” informed Dr Surender Dabas, Chief of Surgical Oncology & Robotic Services at BLK Super Specialty Hospital. 

The last 10 years have shown a major change in minimally invasive chest procedures for lung and mediastinum diseases. Mediastinal goitres and ectopic thyroids represent rare chest diseases. Such ailments were treated in the past through sternotomy, thoracotomy or combined cervicosternotomy.  

The evolution of robotic-assisted surgery has changed the outlook towards the surgeries. It has added the precision and minimization of the surgery followed by speedy recovery. Though the surgery is expensive if compared it reduces the post-surgery costs of ICU that costs nearly INR 70 thousand in speciality hospitals. Dr Dabas said, “This tumour could have been removed by cutting the chest bone, but the challenge, in this case, was to remove it with a minimally invasive technique using American robotic technology by da Vinci Xi to reduce the recovery period.” 

Currently, there are over 70 robots available in India. Out of these 70, 13 are available in the capital, New Delhi. More companies are coming up with similar technology at a lower price making it affordable for the people. 

According to doctors, the thoracic tumour is considered to be the most curable type of cancer. It affects the population in Japan and Korea making the professionals believe that it happens due to the exposure to radiation. Whereas, in India, it is mainly found in Kashmir, Nepal and southern coastline.