"It's remarkable how far we've come in ten years," says Seth Lerner, M.D., who leads White Plains Hospital's prostate cancer surgery program and is a national leader in the field of robotic prostatectomy. "Not too many hospitals of our size have done as many robotic prostatectomies as we have. We've improved patient outcomes and quality of life, reduced the length of the procedure, and shortened the inpatient hospital stay."
White Plains Hospital surgeons have been skillfully performing robotic surgeries since 2005, when Dr. Seth Lerner, assisted by Dr. Philip Weber, performed the Hospital’s first robotic prostatectomy. Today, more than 95 percent of prostate surgeries in the United States are done robotically, and over the past 10 years the Hospital has expanded the use of the robotic platform.
Additional White Plains Hospital surgeons have been leaders in the field as well. Dr. Herbert Gretz is a renowned gynecologic oncologist and Dr. JK Rasamny was the first surgeon in Westchester to perform robotic surgery to remove cancers of the head and neck.
With one of the most comprehensive robotic surgery programs in the region, White Plains Hospital recently added new state-of-the-art operating suites, all equipped for minimally invasive procedures. Robotic surgery uses very small instruments attached to a robotic arm, controlled by a skilled surgeon at a console that allows for very precise operation.
An attached 3D camera helps surgeons see what they can't visualize in open surgery. Robotic surgery has many potential advantages over traditional open surgery including less blood loss, faster recovery time, and less post-operative pain and scarring.
Robotic surgery, now commonplace at many hospitals throughout the U.S., was still a novel concept to many when the FDA approved the da Vinci Surgical System for general laparoscopic surgery in 2000. In 2005, White Plains Hospital acquired a robotic surgical system and began using it to perform prostate cancer surgery.
Find out more about Robotic Surgery at White Plains Hospital here.