My Partial Nephrectomy Too Complex for da Vinci?

My inclination would be to go along with the advice of the surgeon you like and trust.

I had a non robotic laparoscopic right radical nephrectomy which apparently was a success. While in the recovery room my blood pressure dropped (to 40) and I required emergency surgery to find and fix a leaking artery.  That gave me a midline cut from my sternum to below the navel. I also got 12 units of blood.

So, I will make a couple of points.  The first is that my recovery has not been difficult. I was in hospital for 9 days instead of 2 or 3 but everything is healing well and my pain levels were minimal.

My second point is that 'surgeons like a challenge' sounds too much like 'surgeons will take risks'. I don't know why my artery leaked but I suspect it would have been less likely if the surgery was less challenging.

I'll make a third point. The next most important result after surviving the operation is that the surgery removes all of the cancer. I think he is saying that this is more likely with an open nephrectomy.

Steve.

If this was me, I would get a 2nd opinion from a surgeon skilled in robatic/laproscopic surgeries. If they too recommend OPEN, then you'll know for sure. Sorry for what you are going through hon,

Warmly, Jan

I had an open. I healed perfectly. I don't know if your doctor is correct re: your surgery or not. But that isn't your real question. I wonder if you are more concerned with getting it removed in a way that least impacts your life style, vs having an incision where more can be thoroughly examined. Think carefully. Why would you bet your life on this? Besides a robotic isn't a walk in the park for everyone either.

Hi Tesla.  I think if you trust the surgeon, you go with what he or she recommends.  I agree with a couple of my colleagues here who say that the most important issue is to get the entire thing out so you can recover and go on with your life.  I had a robotic assisted partial for my RCC.  But I've also had open surgery on my intestines a couple of times.  There's no doubt the recovery is rougher with the open, but if the surgeon is more comfortable that you'll have a better long term prognosis with an open, I'd go with an open.

I don't think there is a way to view someone's posts. You can search for keywords in the body of posts but that only helps if people sign their messages. My only other suggestion is to browse backwards through the list of titles for potentially interesting subjects. You could probably read an entire month of messges in an hour or less if you skip those that are less interesting to you.

I feel very very lucky about my health generally and especially that this rcc was found and removed. I hope your experience is even better than mine.

Steve.

The cystic component might be the reason then, since the doctor wants to avoid rupture of the tumor during the surgery. On the bright side, some research also shows that cystic tumor tend to have better prognosis

So, the key is to stay healthy before the surgery since that will help you to recover faster and avoid unneccesary complications. Take care. Carmen