The Robot and the Firefly
How the revolutionary ‘firefly’ surgery is used on kidney cancer patients.
More than 273,000 people are diagnosed with kidney cancer globally each year.
For surgeons, the challenge is to remove potentially deadly kidney cancer tumours while minimising bleeding and doing as little damage as possible to the surrounding healthy tissue.
Keep reading
list of 4 itemsDeadly Sahel heatwave caused by ‘human-induced’ climate change: Study
Woman, seeking loan, wheels corpse into Brazilian bank
UK set to ban tobacco sales for a ‘smoke-free’ generation. Will it work?
Using a revolutionary technique known as ‘firefly’, the patient’s blood is injected with a dye which shows up as fluorescent green under the surgeon’s modified camera.
This helps the surgeon identify often unpredictable blood supply to the kidney and tumour. With blood supply established, the surgeon can accurately halt blood supply to the kidney and tumour – a vital step before the tumour can be removed.
Dr Rafik Bedair travels to St George’s Hospital in south London to see kidney cancer patient Bob Cutts receive this pioneering treatment.
Watch The Cure on Tuesday: 2230; Wednesday: 0930; Thursday: 0330; Friday: 1630; Saturday: 2230; Sunday: 0930; Monday: 0330; Tuesday: 1630 GMT. |