Questions for your surgeon

Not all surgeons are built the same or indeed have the same results! It can be difficult to choose a Surgeon or know exactly how much experience they have or whether you will get the best treatment. Here we set out the questions you should be asking your surgeon to ensure the best outcomes for your operation. You should have an understanding of their experience specifically around Robotic Prostate surgery and not other forms of prostate cancer surgery as there are key differences.

1. When did you first start doing Robotic Prostate Surgery for prostate cancer?

   Experience is everything with this surgery, it’s a highly technical operation and put simply the more you do of something the better you get. Surgeons that have been doing robotic surgery for longer tend to get better results. Mr Eddy Started doing Robotic Prostatectomy surgery in January 2008

2. Were you fellowship trained?

   It's important to know how they were trained. Fellowship training where a surgeon spends a year learning and perfecting the operation in an international centre is regarded as the best way to train surgeons.
   Mr Eddy undertook an International Robotic Surgical Fellowship in Australia in 2008/09

3. What is your experience or how many robotic prostatectomy’s have your done? (In Robotic rostate surgery not Open or Laparoscopic)

   Mr Eddy has performed over 1400 Robotic Radical Prostatectomy’s

4. What is the maximum number of cases you do a year?

   Although numbers can vary Mr Eddy has performed upto 170 Robotic Prostatectomy cases a year plus other robotic surgical cases

5. What are your results – Hospital stay, complication rate, incontinence and erectile function recovery?

   It is important that all surgeons know their own results and for patients to know on how many patients these results are on,  however not all do, particularly around cancer and functional outcomes(Incontinence and Erectile dysfunction), feel free to explore Mr Eddy’s results page and presentation on the first 1000 cases.

6. What are your surgical margin rates?

   This is a surrogate marker for cancer outcomes after surgery, all surgeons should know their results, the lower the better. Its important to compare this to the stage of the disease. i.e. T2 or T3, again please see results section.

7. Have you presented your results?

   Transparency is the key, any good surgeon will be happy to have presented their results at national or international meetings, again please go to the results page to see Mr Eddy’s full set of results. Any good Surgeon should be able to show you equivalent results in an equivalent sized series. Mr Eddy and his team have repeatedly presented many aspects of his results.

8. Have you published your results if so on how many cases?

   Again please see results section.

9. Are you a trainer in Robotic Surgery and who have you trained?

   Mr Eddy is a National trainer in Robotic surgeon, he has trained many UK Consultants in 15 different centres so far and all the Consultants in Canterbury. He is a national Proctor for Intuitive Surgical, the manufacturer of the Da Vinci Robot.

10. Do you run a fellowship programme?

    The Leading Centres in the Country tend to run Fellowship programmes. At Canterbury Mr Eddy’s centre was awarded the Urology Foundation Centre for Robotic Surgical Training, one of only 5 in the country and he has set up and run an International fellowship training programme.
    We have also presented the results of out fellowship training programme at International meetings. Please see results section.