Robot surgeons ‘perform as well as humans’

OPERATIONS performed by robots are just as successful as those carried out by surgeons, the first trial of its kind has found.

The Australian study involved 306 prostate cancer patients, half of whom were operated on by a robot with the other half having open surgery.

It found those who had a gland removed by a machine were doing as well after three months as those who went under the knife in the traditional way.

They experienced less pain doing day-to-day activities a week later, and reported better overall physical quality of life after six weeks, although this levelled out over time.

Those undergoing robot surgery also lost far less blood and spent less time in hospital, the research published in the Lancet found.

Robotic surgery has become increasingly common in the UK.