First robotically-assisted liver resection performed at Jefferson University Hospital

Cataldo Doria, M.D., Ph.D., Nicoletti Family Professor of Transplant Surgery at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University; director of the Division of Transplantation; and co-director of the liver tumor program at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital is the first surgeon at Jefferson to perform a robotically-assisted liver resection. He is only one of a handful of surgeons across the country certified to do so.

Liver resection involves the partial removal of the liver. For many individuals diagnosed with liver cancer, this treatment option offers the best chance for long-term survival or cure. Surgery to remove a tumor is the surest method of eliminating the cancer - and preventing its spread to other parts of the body - but the traditional open procedure can take as much as six hours with a four or five day hospital stay. Now, eligible patients have an alternative to traditional liver resection that utilizes the latest robotic system to assist the surgeon in performing this delicate operation.

Using the da Vinci® robot system, Dr. Doria is able to perform this complex surgical procedure with improved precision and ergonomics as well as a three-dimensional view of the surgical site. Similar to a human hand, the robotic instruments translate the natural movements of a surgeon's hand into precise movements inside the abdominal cavity. The three-dimensional view of the operative field, along with a greater degree of freedom and tremor filtration, provides a surgeon with full dexterity to perform delicate dissection and precise suturing.

"A robotically-assisted liver resection is a viable alternative for eligible patients to more traditional open or laparoscopic surgery," said Dr. Doria. "The patient will benefit as a result of improved cosmetic results, shorter hospitalization times and less postoperative pain."