Page 24 - Waterfall City Issue 5 May 2024

Waterfall City Health

RAPID COLON SURGERY

RECOVERY WITH

ROBOTICS AND SUNLIGHT

Precision tech and the sun’s healing power for lower colon resection.

T he latest robotic technology and the earth’s ancient
sun both played a role in the rapid post-surgical
recovery of a man being treated for rectal cancer.
One of Colin Horn’s greatest concerns, when
he was diagnosed was that he might need a colostomy
bag after the surgery to remove the 124mm section
of his lower colon where the tumour was growing.

“I have a positive mindset generally, and I had been under
the knife for a quadruple heart bypass years ago. When
Dr Sudha Naidoo and I discussed the options and potential
risks of the surgery to remove the diseased part of my colon,
my single biggest fear was that I would be left reliant on a
stoma and colostomy bag and how that would affect my
life,” says Mr Horn, 74.

“When a person has rectal cancer, the surgical field is very
close to the nerves involved in sphincter function, bladder
control and erectile function. The robotic-assisted approach
makes a difficult surgery deep in the narrow confines of the
pelvis a little easier to perform, and the capabilities of this
technology, fortunately, allowed us to avoid these critical
nerves and the need for a stoma in Mr Horn’s case,” explains
robotically trained general and bariatric surgeon Dr Naidoo.

Dr Naidoo and fellow da Vinci Xi robotic accredited general Colin Horn is pictured enjoying fish and chips while watching the sunset with
surgeon, Dr Bhavesh Gordhan, performed the low anterior his wife Bev on a recent holiday to Pringle Bay. Mr Horn was surprised at how
resection procedure at Netcare Waterfall City Hospital with quickly he was able to get back to daily life after having robotic-assisted
Professor Amjad Pravaiz, proctor and head of minimal access colorectal surgery for cancer at Netcare Waterfall City Hospital in 2022.
and robotic colorectal surgery at the European Academy of
Robotic Colorectal Surgery (EARCS). confines of the pelvis through small punctures in the skin
without placing much pressure on the abdominal walls,”
The flagship da Vinci Xi is the latest robotic surgical system Dr Naidoo says.
and the fourth generation of the pioneering da Vinci,
produced by Intuitive and locally distributed by Medhold. “After Mr Horn’s procedure, we placed him in the intensive care
unit for observation and initial recovery, and the next day, he
“The system allows us to be deeply immersed in the surgical was already upbeat, walking around and talking – we even had
field, with the visuals magnified ten times and in 3D so to ask him to take it easy. With the traditional or laparoscopic
we can see much better than the human eye. The system approach to this operation, recovery tends to take longer, and
enables us to work precisely and comfortably in the narrow patients often require more postoperative pain medication.”

22 Waterfall City Issue 5 2024