Surgery Overkill: Why Do We Love Robotic Procedures?



Even though most medical associations have warned men with early stage prostate cancer not to rush into unneeded treatment - like surgery or radiation that could leave them incontinent or impotent  - older men are increasingly choosing expensive new treatments, including robotic surgery, despite that these procedures probably won't help them.



According to the researchers, men older than 65 with low-grade prostate cancer have about a 25 percent chance of dying from it 20 years after diagnosis - but a more than 60 percent chance of dying of other causes.

Robotic surgery is heavily promoted by doctors and hospitals as advanced technology that offers fewer side effects and faster recovery, but the study notes that "comparative studies have shown that the advantages of these newer treatments are marginal at best."





Michael Zinner, M.D., head of surgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and coauthor of the JAMA editorial, admitted to the Wall Street Journal that the two robots at his hospital are in such constant use, the facility is acquiring a third.

Photo: wikimedia commons


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