Trust marks 5,000th robotic surgery milestone

A hospital trust has marked a "major milestone" after its 5,000th patient underwent innovative robotic surgery.

The Da Vinci robot was first used by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in 2015 and was initially used by its urology team to perform minimally invasive procedures for conditions like prostate cancer.

Now five other specialities – gynae-oncology, thoracic surgery, colorectal, upper gastrointestinal and head and neck – also offer the treatment.

Peter Sedman, deputy group chief medical officer, said: "The introduction of robotic surgery was a game-changer for our patients 11 years ago."

He said that since then they had continued to innovate and develop the Robotically Assisted Surgery Centre.

"Patients spend less time in hospital, often going home the same day as surgery," Sedman added.

"It's safer than conventional surgical practices with fewer complications and risks, and it means we can see more patients in need of a surgical solution more quickly."

The trust, which runs Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital, said a celebration would be held in September at Castle Hill to mark the 5,000th operation, which was carried out to remove a cancerous tumour.

Robotic surgery began at Castle Hill Hospital in May 2015 after Hull businessman, former Hull City owner and philanthropist Dr Assem Allam and his family made a £1.4m donation to buy the Da Vinci Surgical Robotic System.

A second robot, enabling a major expansion of surgical capacity to benefit even more patients, was added in 2019 as part of an £8m donation by the Allam family, the hospital trust said.

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