Personal Preference is Key when Debating Partial vs. Full Mastectomy

Approximately 75 % of women diagnosed with early stage breast cancer are candidates for either mastectomy or breast-conserving surgery (also called a partial mastectomy.)   Mastectomy is the removal of the entire breast, while breast-conserving surgery removes the cancerous tumor and part of the surrounding breast tissue. Breast-conserving surgery is usually followed by radiation therapy.

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Vitality Restored: The Science of Prosthetic Patient Care

I had a choice to make: Did I want to design things, build things, and develop new technology? Or did I want to go into the medical field and help people?

My two interests were leading me in opposite directions . . . until I discovered the field of prosthetics. (more…)

Single-Incision and Robotic Surgery: Medical Breakthrough or Marketing Ploy?

A recently published article (Reuters Health, July 18) appears under the headline: “Single-Incision Approach Yields No Benefit in Laparoscopic Gallbladder Surgery.”

Authors of the article, a group of surgeons from the University of Leicester in England, looked at 49 studies involving 2,336 patients who underwent single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy (SILC). Based on their study the researchers concluded, “Outcomes from systematic reviews rather than market research must guide decisions about surgical procedures if we are to ensure that surgical progress is not dictated by commercial and industrial interests.”

Upon reviewing the article (http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/767710?src=mp&spon=14), my colleagues and I enjoyed a healthy conversation about the potential merits of newer procedures, such as single-incision laparoscopic surgery and robotic surgery. The following captures some of our thoughts: (more…)

Laparoscopic Colon Resection Decreases Mortality Rate

One of the greatest advances in abdominal surgery in the past decade is the advent of laparoscopic colon resections. Minimally invasive resections were introduced in the 1990s for benign disease; in 2003 they were proven to be of equal oncologic benefit for colon cancer when compared to their open surgery counterpart. Studies have confirmed the five-year survival and local recurrence rates for laparoscopic and open or traditional surgical methods are very similar, and today the laparoscopic technique is an established treatment for colorectal cancer. (more…)