Laparoscopic and Robotic Assisted Pancreatic Surgery

Minimally invasive techniques can used for some of the following surgeries:

Enucleation
Whipple Operation
Distal Pancreatectomy
Spleen Preserving Distal Pancreatectomy
Cyst-Gastrostomy or Cyst-Jejunostomy
Pancreatic Debridement

Advantages of Laparoscopic/ Robotic Assisted Surgery include:

Small incisions means smaller scars
Significantly Less pain and postoperative discomfort
Shorter hospital stay
Shorter recovery time
Returning back to full activities sooner

What does Whipple Operation entail?

The whipple operation involves “removing the head of the pancreas”. As you will note from the illustration the common bile duct, the ampulla, the duodenum are all integrally related to the head of the pancreas and all share their blood supply. Therefore the Whipple operation is a fairly complex operation removing portions of all these structures and then re-hooking these back up to a new loop of intestine. Dr. Allen Whipple was a Professor of Surgery at Columbia University in New York City who popularized this operation in the early 30’s. It has since undergone several minor modifications and therefore goes by different names. It is an operation that should only be done by experienced surgeons who do these routinely. Dr. Singh has been doing this operation for over 15 years with excellent outcomes. The average hospital stay ranges from 7-14 days.

Can the whipple operations be done laparoscopically?

Yes. A good number of early cancers of the pancreas or small lesions cases can be done using the minimally invasive techniques i.e. by making very small incisions (5- 10 mm) for introducing instruments to allow dissection.. Most of these involve hand assisted techniques. Decisions are made on a on a case by case basis upon reviewing the CT or MRI scans to ensure the quality of the operation is not compromised if done using laparoscopic techniques.

Can the whipple operations be done using Robotic Technology?

Yes. Robotic technology offers all the advantages of minimally invasive surgery without the technical challenges of a conventional laparoscopic approach. Plus, robotic technology shows the surgical field in 3-D, which allows greater precision than the 2-D laparoscopic view. Once again, decisions are made on a on a case by case basis upon reviewing the scans and making sure we are not compromising on the quality of the cancer operation. At the Liver and Pancreas Center, we are using the Da Vinci Robotic Surgical System to perform these surgeries.