Doctors at the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital (TNGMSSH) here have performed a robot-assisted surgery to treat a 44-year-old man diagnosed with ureter transitional carcinoma, a tumour of the ureter, with renal obstruction.
The robotic surgery centre at the hospital, which was inaugurated by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin earlier this year, is the first such facility in any State government-run hospital in the country, a release said.
The patient, a plumber hailing from Tirupattur district, had approached the hospital with symptoms of blood stained urine, abdominal pain radiating to the thigh, and loss of appetite. Ureteroscopy and biopsy revealed a high grade urothelial carcinoma of the left ureter with the obstruction of left kidney.
R. Jayaganesh, urologist at the hospital, who performed the surgery, said that a radical nephroureterectomy, which involved the removal of the affected kidney and ureter through the robotic-assisted system was performed. He said the novel technology helped in addressing the complex anatomy and tumour involvement efficiently. He added that this minimally invasive surgery helped in faster patient recovery.
N. Ragavan, uro-oncologist and robotic surgeon at Apollo Hospitals, who helped in the surgery, said the Tamil Nadu government should be thanked for installing such an advanced system in a government hospital.
The departments of urology, surgical gastroenterology, surgical oncology, endocrine surgery and cardiothoracic surgery at the hospital have been using the facility since its launch. The release said that around ten robotic surgeries have been performed at the centre till date.
