MY RELATIONSHIP TO DA VINCI SURGERY: Patient

MY CONDITION: Cervical Cancer

TYPE OF PROCEDURE I HAD: da Vinci Hysterectomy

MY SURGEON: Dr. John F Boggess

HOSPITAL WHERE MY PROCEDURE WAS PERFORMED: University of North Carolina

WHY I CHOSE DA VINCI SURGERY:
We actually went out of town and my doctor tried calling me while we were out of town. He called me into his office and told me that I had cervical cancer. Being a mother of a 2 year old at the time, and I wanted more children, that was a devastating blow. And so, we immediately scheduled the surgery because (I thought) the quicker you could get (the cancer) out the better. I had scheduled an open hysterectomy and it was going to be in two weeks.
My mother in law had had early stages of ovarian cancer in January of the same year, and she had mentioned this doctor in Chapel Hill. When we got to meet with Dr. Boggess, he said, "I don't do it that way (open) anymore." My husband's and my first reaction was, "What are you talking about?" He said, "I do it this new way, I don't do it the old way anymore, and you're a great candidate for me doing it robotically."
It took me about two days to decide; I did some research on the internet; I spoke with (Dr. Boggess), I spoke with his nurse, I spoke with family members; and I was ready to roll. I had fully committed to going to this other surgeon; I was very pleased with her, I was very pleased with her nurse, I was very pleased with her practice; we had the surgery set up, scheduled and had all my pre-ops done. And I said, "Nope. I'm going with the other."

HOW LONG I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL:
After I woke up from the surgery that day, I was tired and groggy and with the normal wears of a surgery, but I was able to get up and walk around. I walked around the floor eight times that day, and the next day they sent me home.

MY PAIN AND/OR DISCOMFORT LEVEL:
I didn't have to worry about blood loss, I didn't have to worry about pain, I didn't have to worry about an open wound. I had a c-section when my son was born, and I had a faster recovery time from the robotic surgery than I did from my c-section.

WHEN I RETURNED TO NORMAL ACTIVITIES:
I had my son's birthday party, with the works, four days later. I was a little slow, but you know, I would have still been in the hospital if I'd had a traditional hysterectomy. Within a week I was doing most normal things, except for the lifting and the driving, which they wouldn't let me do. But as far as (everything else), I was cooking dinner, I was giving (my son) a bath . I just couldn't lift him.

I WOULD RECOMMEND DA VINCI SURGERY TO MY FRIENDS OR FAMILY MEMBERS!

We actually went out of town and my doctor tried calling me while we were out of town. He called me into his office and told me that I had cervical cancer. Being a mother of a 2 year old at the time, and I wanted more children, that was a devastating blow. And so, we immediately scheduled the surgery because (I thought) the quicker you could get (the cancer) out the better. I had scheduled an open hysterectomy and it was going to be in two weeks.

My mother in law had had early stages of ovarian cancer in January of the same year, and she had mentioned this doctor in Chapel Hill. When we got to meet with Dr. Boggess, he said, "I don't do it that way (open) anymore." My husband's and my first reaction was, "What are you talking about?" He said, "I do it this new way, I don't do it the old way anymore, and you're a great candidate for me doing it robotically."

It took me about two days to decide; I did some research on the internet; I spoke with (Dr. Boggess), I spoke with his nurse, I spoke with family members; and I was ready to roll. I had fully committed to going to this other surgeon; I was very pleased with her, I was very pleased with her nurse, I was very pleased with her practice; we had the surgery set up, scheduled and had all my pre-ops done. And I said, "Nope. I'm going with the other."

After I woke up from the surgery that day, I was tired and groggy and with the normal wears of a surgery, but I was able to get up and walk around. I walked around the floor eight times that day, and the next day they sent me home.

The robot went in with five incisions, and I had my son's birthday party, with the works, four days later. I was a little slow, but you know, I would have still been in the hospital if I'd had a traditional hysterectomy.

I didn't have to worry about blood loss, I didn't have to worry about pain, I didn't have to worry about an open wound. I had a c-section when my son was born, and I had a faster recovery time from the robotic surgery than I did from my c-section.
To be honest with you, within a week I was doing most normal things, except for the lifting and the driving, which they wouldn't let me do. But as far as (everything else), I was cooking dinner, I was giving (my son) a bath . I just couldn't lift him.

A doctor that I grew up down the street from ended up having the prostate cancer surgery right around the same time I'd had my surgery, and it was kind of a cool phenomenon that we were both operated on using this very new, radical idea.
My husband, when we first started to talk about (treatment options), went to one of my parent's friends, and he said, "I'm not really sure you need to do that. It's too new, it's too this ." And now he's telling other people about it.