Forton Wimbush’s urinary obstruction may have saved his life.
A 67-year-old Freehold resident, Forton was experiencing dizziness, high blood pressure, discomfort from swollen kidneys, and difficulty urinating when his wife, Susan, brought him to CentraState’s Emergency Department.
Tests revealed that he was in kidney failure and had a urinary obstruction—along with prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is not uncommon; approximately one in six men nationwide will develop the condition. The good news is that when it is detected early and treated appropriately, the cure rate is greater than 90 percent.
Board-certified urologist Troy Sukkarieh, MD, explained the results and the treatment options—which included radiation therapy and surgery—to the Wimbushes. Forton chose to have robotic surgery to treat the condition.
The Benefits of Robotic Surgery
Dr. Sukkarieh used the da Vinci Xi® Surgical System, the latest robotic technology available, to remove Forton’s prostate and lymph nodes. Traditional laparoscopy (minimally invasive surgery) is effective for many routine procedures, but it has some limits in prostate surgery due to the complexity of these procedures. For those who are candidates for robot-assisted prostate surgery, the da Vinci® Surgical System offers an alternative to traditional and laparoscopic surgeries. It allows surgeons to perform delicate and complex operations through a few tiny incisions with increased vision, precision, dexterity, and control.
The benefits of robotic surgery can include:
- Less pain
- Less blood loss
- Less scarring
- Shorter recovery time
- Shorter hospital stay
- Lower rate of surgical complications
- Quicker return to daily activities
Over the past eight years, CentraState surgeons have performed more than 1,850 robotic surgery procedures using this minimally invasive surgical technology.
Because the procedure completely removed the cancerous mass, Forton didn’t need radiation or other cancer treatment therapies. And, surgery helped alleviate the urinary obstruction, enabling his kidneys to perform properly.
“He came to the hospital with one ailment, but it was opportune timing because we were able to detect and remove stage 1 cancer, which saved his life,” explains Dr. Sukkarieh, who has been the director of robotic surgery at CentraState since 2010.
Susan and Forton, the father of four sons and grandfather to five grandchildren, have resumed their frequent walks around Manasquan Reservoir.
“I’m glad doctors found the cancer early and were able to remove it completely,” Forton says. “I’m feeling better and getting stronger every day.”
For more information about robotic surgery services at CentraState, visit centrastate.com/robotic-surgery or call 866-CENTRA7 (866-236-8727).
