Tumors buried deep in the hypogastrium of a woman have not only squeezed and deformed the organs, but also seriously eroded important great vessels. A group of experts at Urology Dept. of Union Hospital challenged their limits and with the help of Da Vinci Robot, stripped off the tumors and replaced them with artificial vessels. According to academic literature, this is the first case of replacement of complex blood vessels with the help of Da Vinci robot in the world.
45-year-old Ms. Su lives in Huanggang. She felt pain in the right abdomen at the beginning of last year. In April, a retroperitoneal tumor with a diameter of 4.5 cm was found in re-examination at Union Hospital to have squeezed out the organs, infringed upon left renal vein and eroded venae cava inferior into a thin seam. That is the biggest blood vessel in human body. Any little imprudence might lead to massive hemorrhage during the operation and it was very difficult to cut off the tumor.
Following repeated discussions, the team led by Prof. ZHANG Xiaoping, Director of the Urology Dept. decided to solve the problem in a minimally invasive way with the help of Da Vinci Robot. Prof. ZHANG Xiaoping, the chief surgeon, controlled the robotic arm and stripped off the tumor carefully. As expected, the venae cava inferior was eroded by the tumor and could not be repaired in situ. The only way was to cut off the damaged blood vessel and replace it with a 12-cm artificial vessel. With the assistance of Da Vinci Robot, Prof. ZHANG Xiaoping's team finished this demanding operation successfully under minimally invasive laparoscope. The Urology Dept. expanded the boundaries again.
As a matter of fact, robot working with urologists in surgery is becoming the norm. Back in 2015, Urology Dept. was the first in central and southern China to use robot in the treatment of urogenital tumor. More than 1,600 cases of this kind have been completed to date. Taking renal cancer for an example, many patients are at the final stage when the disease is confirmed. Tumors are rampant and might have pervaded the blood vessels, and infringed upon venae renis and venae cava inferior. This operation is a highly demanding iconic type of urinary surgery and the success is owing to the skills of the staff of Urology Dept. with support from other departments.In 2014, Urology Dept. built a database of big clinical samples for renal cancer, bladder carcinoma and prostatic cancer, and founded China Renal Cancer Alliance, Central China Center. It offers best-in-class precision treatment and has a minimally invasive rate of more than 90%.
