Dr. Ankit Bharat at the robot console
Advanced surgical benefits
The robotic approach allows surgeons to work with unprecedented precision using 3D visualization while seated at a console, rather than standing over an open chest for nearly ten hours. The robot’s micro-instruments navigate through 4-5 small incisions per side, carefully removing diseased lungs and implanting healthy ones.
“The precision we achieve with robotic surgery is remarkable. We can perform incredibly complex maneuvers in tight spaces that human hands simply cannot access as effectively,” said Samuel Kim, MDthoracic surgeon and director of Robotic Thoracic Surgery at the Canning Thoracic Institute who performed the procedure with Dr. Bharat. “While more long-term data is still needed, we believe recovery time for these patients will be cut in half because they’ll have less post-operative discomfort. Robotic surgery is rapidly evolving, especially in the field of thoracic surgery, and we believe there’s a clear role for lung transplantation in carefully selected patients.”
Available for select candidates
The procedure is ideal for patients with emphysema or lung fibrosis who have large chest cavities, no prior chest surgeries, stable heart function, and appropriate anatomy for the robotic approach.
“Every lung transplant carries life-or-death stakes with zero margin for error. We carefully select patients where robotics offers clear advantages without compromising safety or speed,” said Dr. Kim. “I don’t think robotic lung transplant will completely replace conventional lung transplant, but I do think it will become more popular in the future.”
“At the Canning Thoracic Institute, we have pioneered several transformative minimally invasive thoracic procedures such as the robotic lung volume reduction surgery for emphysema, A-PLUS program for lung cancer, robotic SAINT program for advanced stage lung cancer, and the robotic PRIME MINISTER program for esophageal cancer, so developing a robotic lung transplant program was quite easy for us,” said Dr. Bharat.
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