Cancer surgery patients fare better with robot surgeons, study finds

Patients facing major abdominal operations should be offered robotic surgery because the procedure leads to quicker recovery and reduced time in hospital, a study has found.

British researchers discovered patients who had robot-assisted bladder cancer surgery recovered faster and were sent home sooner than those who had open surgery, which involves large incisions in the skin and muscle.

Robotic surgery, in which surgeons guide minimally invasive instruments remotely, reduced the chance of re-admission by 52 per cent, and revealed a 77 per cent reduction in the prevalence of blood clots when compared to open surgery patients.

Researchers from University College London and the University of Sheffield involved in the trial for the study said their findings challenged the idea that open surgery is the ‘gold standard’ for major operations.

British researchers discovered patients who had robot-assisted bladder cancer surgery recovered faster and were sent home sooner than those who had open surgery