New Surgical System Responsible for Speedy Recovery
When John Perry, of Halifax (on the right pictured with his wife, Sharon), had his annual
checkup last year, his primary care
physician ordered a routine prostate-specific
antigen (PSA) test. The results indicated
he might have prostate cancer. A biopsy confirmed the
bad news.
“John has always been so healthy,” said Perry’s wife, Sharon. “I never would have thought this would happen to him.”
As news got out to family and friends about Perry’s diagnosis, one name kept popping up — Dennis LaRock, MD, a urologist at Charlton Memorial Hospital. Another name he heard was da Vinci — as in the da Vinci® Robotic Surgical System, which Southcoast purchased last fall.
The Perrys made an appointment with Dr. LaRock, during which they discussed the da Vinci. “The option of having a shorter recovery time and fewer side effects was obviously very appealing to me,” said Perry, who is an electrician with the Braintree Electric Light Department.
“John was a very good candidate for surgery with the da Vinci,” said Dr. LaRock. “He is young, healthy, of healthy weight and wanted to get back to work quickly.”
After the surgery, Perry stayed in the hospital overnight. He went home the following day. “I had so little discomfort I didn’t even take aspirin once I got home,” Perry said.
“John had a textbook recovery,” Dr. LaRock said. “I released him to return to work four weeks after surgery.”
This year, Perry’s PSA test showed good results. “You don’t ever want anything like this to happen,” said Sharon Perry. “But if something does happen, this is the experience you want.”
The Art of da Vinci: How the Robotic Surgical System Works
The da Vinci Robotic Surgical System enables surgeons to use minimally invasive techniques instead of traditional open surgery.“For patients, this less invasive procedure means less trauma, pain, blood loss and risk of side effects, plus shorter hospital stays and faster recovery,” said Derek Hausladen, MD, a Southcoast urologist.
Da Vinci is sometimes called robotic surgery, but the surgeon performs every step of the procedure, using four robotic arms that hold miniature instruments and a high-definition camera. The surgeon works from a control console, which gives him a 3-D view of the patient and translates his hand movements into the precise micromovements of the da Vinci surgical instruments.
Southcoast surgeons currently use the da Vinci for urological surgeries, and plan to offer gynecological procedures soon.
