Korean Surgeon Prof Yoon Woo Koh to perform Robotic Surgeries in Kolkata

As professor of Otorhinolaryngology at Seoul’s Yonsei University College of Medicine and Yonsei Cancer Center Prof Koh has extensive experience in robotic and aesthetic head & neck surgery.

He will also be conducting a workshop sharing expertise with nearly 60 ENT, Head & Neck OncoSurgeons on August 25 ahead of the 3rd National Conference of the Indian Academy of Otorhinolaryngology--Head & Neck surgery.

Sukrit Bose of Apollo Gleneagles Hospital will join Prof Koh in Head & Neck surgical procedures on Thursday.

Apollo Gleneagles Hospital has a group of experienced surgeons who have conducted over 400 Robotic Surgeries for removal of cancerous tissues from Prostate, Kidney, and Head & Neck areas.

“The interactive workshop between Korea’s Prof Koh and scores of Indian surgeons is expected to transfer experience in head and neck robotic procedures and communicate the positive impact on patients by tackling difficult and recurrent head and neck tumours,” said Sukrit Bose, convenor and course director of the workshop and ENT Head & Neck OncoSurgeon, Apollo Gleneagles Hospital.

As the incidence of tongue and mouth cancers are very high in India, Head & Neck surgery for cancer at the base of the tongue can best be undertaken using the Robot, with least pain and scarring to the patient.

“A significant benefit of Robotic Surgery in head & neck areas is that it leaves no facial scars. Better outcomes and cosmetic benefits in head and neck cancer patients lead to an improved quality of life,” says Bose adding that these facilities are now being offered by Apollo Gleneagles Hospital in Kolkata.

Prof. Yoon Woh Koh is also slated to speak to over 300 ENT--Head & Neck surgeons on "Retroauricular Robotic and Endoscopic Head and Neck Surgery as a Game Changer" at the conference of the Indian Academy of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and neck surgery on Aug 26-27.

In the last five years, multi-disciplinary Robotic Surgery has established its value in India with documented superior patient outcomes and efficacy.

The Vattikuti Foundation, a US-based non-profit promoting robotic surgeries around the world, has helped expand Robotic Surgery to nearly three dozen hospitals in a dozen Indian cities, in just five years, even as the number of trained robotic surgeons has grown to 190.

Robotic Systems are used especially in Urology, Gynaecology, General Surgery as well as for complex cancers surgeries like Colorectal and Head & Neck surgeries. It is also being used for kidney transplants and obesity reduction procedures in Bariatric surgery.

Over 4000 robotic procedures were performed in India in 2015 with distinctly superior patient outcomes. Indian hospitals that have embraced da Vinci surgical robots from Intuitive Surgical Inc. have found that the system offers superior outcome for the patients.