The Royal United Hospitals (RUH) Bath NHS Foundation Trust has become one of five trusts in the UK to introduce an innovative piece of equipment used for the targeted removal of cancer cells for patients with ovarian cancer.
The PlasmaJet Ultra is more successful in removing all traces of the tumour than more traditional surgical methods, leading to better patient outcomes.
Jonathan Frost, Consultant Gynaecological Oncologist at the RUH said: “This is an invaluable tool in advanced ovarian cancer, where the tumour is typically found in multiple nodules on the surface of organs and tissues such as the bowel.
“We know that this is going to make such a difference to our patients and their quality of life and we are delighted to be able to offer this advancement in cancer treatment to our patients at the RUH.”
The PlasmaJet Ultra uses the plasma energy from ionised argon gas to destroy cancer cells safely during surgery. This makes it easier to remove cancer cells from structures such as the bowel and diaphragm, without causing damage to healthy surrounding tissue.
As a result, there may be no need to remove the tissue in these areas, which reduces the impact on a patient’s quality of life after their surgery and the amount of time they stay in hospital.
Jonathan added: “Now we have the PlasmaJet Ultra, we’re able to vaporise a tumour from tissues more precisely, causing minimal damage to areas such as the bowel so patients have better outcomes and a shorter recovery period. Using the PlasmaJet we can avoid bowel surgery and stomas in some patients.”
The new equipment can also reduce the length of time it takes to operate which reduces the risk of complications for the patient, such as infections.
