“Technological innovations in surgical approach for thyroid cancer.”
Lang, B. H. H. and C. Y. Lo (2010).
Journal of Oncology.
Over the last decade, surgeons have witnessed dramatic changes in surgical practice as a result of the introduction of new technological advancement. Some of these changes include refinement of techniques in thyroid cancer surgery. The development of various endoscopic thyroidectomy techniques, the addition of the da Vinci robot, and the use of operative adjuncts in thyroid surgery, such as intraoperative neuromonitoring and quick intraoperative parathyroid hormone, have made thyroid cancer surgery not only safer and better accepted by patients with thyroid cancer but also offer them more surgical treatment options. © 2010 Brian Hung-Hin Lang and Chung-Yau Lo.
“Head and neck oncology – 2010, part I.”
Myers, E. N. (2010).
Otolaryngologia Polska 64(3): 136-146.
This article reviewed the current state of the art in head and neck oncology. These include very important and stimulating new areas of interest including the marked acceptance of chemoradiation in favor of surgery in patients with cancer of the head and neck. The concept of HPV as a cause of cancer of the oropharynx is relatively new and very important in the epidemiology of these tumors. New modalities such as PET CT scanning and robotic surgery are discussed and appear to be very important in management of cancer of the head and neck. Endoscopic endonasal skull base surgery is another new high technology contribution to the field of head and neck surgery as is the use of endoscopic assisted thyroid surgery. These and other new concepts are discussed in this manuscript. ©by Polskie Towarzystwo Otorynolaryngologów.
“Transoral robotic surgery for parapharyngeal space tumors.”
O’Malley, B. W., Jr., H. Quon, et al. (2010).
ORL; Journal of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology and Its Related Specialties 72(6): 332-336.
Purpose: To evaluate the outcomes of patients with parapharyngeal space (PPS) tumors treated with a transoral robotic surgery (TORS) approach. Materials and Methods: We prospectively enrolled well-defined benign PPS tumors accessible from the oropharynx with no carotid encasement or bone erosion. We designated outcome measures that included technical feasibility of the approach, local tumor control and complication rates. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the outcome data. Results: With a mean follow-up of 29.9 months (range 12-40 months), a total of 10 patients have been enrolled. TORS was completed in 9 of 10 patients with acceptable operative time and blood loss and no significant complications including hemorrhage, infection, trismus or tumor spillage. Local control has been 100% for 7 patients with pleomorphic adenomas. Conclusions: We confirm the safety and feasibility of the TORS approach for PPS tumors that achieves a high local control and low surgical complication rate. TORS is a viable approach for removing benign tumors and lesions of the PPS.