Lake Station resident Alisa Keefe has a family history of uterine cancer. Her mother had passed away from cancer so she knew that she was at an increased risk and one day may need to fight the disease.
When Keefe was diagnosed with endometrial hyperplasia-the presence of abnormal uterine cells that can become cancerous-she was recommended for minimally invasive gynecologic surgery. The total laparoscopic hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO) procedure would completely remove her uterus, her cervix, her ovaries and her Fallopian tubes.
Keefe had the procedures performed at St. Mary Medical Center which is designated as a Center of Excellence for Minimally Invasive Gynecology (COEMIG) by the Surgical Review Corporation (SRC). Her surgeon, OB/GYN Douglas Dedelow, DO, performed the procedures laparoscopically using the da Vinci® Robotic Surgical System. The hospital also has been designated by the SRC as a Center of Excellence for Robotic Surgery (COERS).
“Procedures with da Vinci result in less hospital time, less risk of infection, and less pain for the patient,” Dedelow says. “Many times patients can go back to work more quickly.”
Keefe says she returned to work after only eight days, as compared to the usual six to eight week hiatus for traditional “open” total hysterectomies. She only spent one night in the hospital, not three to five days as was common for an open surgery.
“There are a lot of single moms who really can’t take off the six weeks that you previously needed for recovery,” Keefe says. “So this method is really nice and convenient for them.”
Positive patient experiences and outcomes are the primary reason that St. Mary Medical Center and Community Healthcare System’s sister hospitals, Community Hospital in Munster and St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago, utilize the da Vinci for minimally invasive procedures including gynecology, general surgery, urology and thoracic surgeries.
For more information on minimally invasive surgeries at the hospitals of Community Healthcare System with the da Vinci Surgical System, visit COMHS.org/services/surgery/robotics.
