National Comprehensive Cancer Network

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Robot Spurs Men’s Recovery After Surgery, Urologist Says at NCCN Annual Conference

HOLLYWOOD, Fla., March 16, 2007 — Even surgeons who once favored traditional “open” methods of cutting and suturing during prostate or bladder-cancer operations have learned to love the joystick-operated robot, said Timothy G. Wilson, M.D., director of the Prostate Cancer Program at City of Hope Cancer Center, at the National Comprehensive Cancer Network’s 12th Annual Conference, March 14-18.

Studies show that men undergoing radical prostatectomy go home sooner and regain bladder control and sexual function weeks earlier when the robot is employed, Wilson said.

“If you can save somebody three months of diaper time, that’s important,” he said, noting that patients’ two top postoperative worries are incontinence and impotence. Wilson predicted Food and Drug go-ahead for other manufacturers’ robotic devices in the next few years, bringing competition to a field now dominated by Intuitive Surgical’s da Vinci device, approved in 2000 to perform advanced surgical techniques.

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About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), a not-for-profit alliance of 21 of the world’s leading cancer centers, is dedicated to improving the quality and effectiveness of care provided to patients with cancer. Through the leadership and expertise of clinical professionals at NCCN Member Institutions, NCCN develops resources that present valuable information to the numerous stakeholders in the health care delivery system. As the arbiter of high-quality cancer care, NCCN promotes the importance of continuous quality improvement and recognizes the significance of creating clinical practice guidelines appropriate for use by patients, clinicians, and other health care decision-makers. The primary goal of all NCCN initiatives is to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of oncology practice so patients can live better lives. For more information, visit NCCN.org.

The NCCN Member Institutions are:

• City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center
  Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center
• Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Fox Chase Cancer Center
• Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center / Seattle Cancer Care Alliance
• The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins
• Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University
• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
• H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
• The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute
• Roswell Park Cancer Institute
• Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine
• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital / University of Tennessee Cancer Institute
• Stanford Comprehensive Cancer Center
• University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center
• UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
• University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center
• UNMC Eppley Cancer Center at The Nebraska Medical Center
• The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
• Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center