Robotic Surgery for Head and Neck Cancer - Treatment & procedures

Head and Neck cancer treatment can be quite challenging for both the patient and their family. Until recently, most head and neck surgeries meant open surgeries. These procedures leave scars, along with prolonged recovery. Recent developments in robotics technology have eased some of the complex surgical procedures of Head and Neck Surgery and may be performed using minimally invasive methods.

Only very few centers in India, including the Apollo Hospitals – Hyderabad and Chennai are performing robotic Head & Neck Surgeries. At Apollo, we have da Vinci Surgical System®– the ‘Smart Surgery’ robot which is the most advanced technology in the field of robotics.

The da Vinci Surgical System® has features like 3D image processing system, robotic arms which are interactive and have joints that follow the surgeon’s hand movements and a camera arm that allows the surgeon to see a magnified HD view of the procedure.

With the da Vinci system, Robotic-assisted Head & Neck surgery can be applied to two procedures:

Robotic Thyroidectomy

This procedure was popularized by Prof Woong Youn Chung, a surgical endocrinologist from Korea in 2005. This is a Robot-assisted thyroid gland surgery indicated for benign and cancerous nodules without an incision on the neck. Special retractors were designed to perform this procedure through the armpit. In recent times, an incision is made behind the ear to reach the thyroid gland and another approach is from the inside of the mouth.

Trans-Oral Robotic Surgery (TORS)

TORS is performed for early stages of throat cancer. The approach for this procedure is through the mouth. Depending upon the case, radiotherapy and chemotherapy may often be avoided.

Head and neck conditions need much more attention, expertise and hence require experienced surgeons who can help you understand all the pros and cons. Robotic Surgeons at Apollo are trained and experienced in the da Vinci system and can help you determine if robotic surgery is right for you.