Throat cancer, or oropharyngeal cancer, may sometimes require partial removal of the base of the tongue or palatine tonsil. At Morristown Medical Center, our specialized surgeons use the da Vinci® Surgical System to perform transoral robotic surgery (TORS), which allows us to access and treat throat cancer through the mouth without having to make any incisions in the lip, facial skin or lower jaw.
This approach minimizes or eliminates the need for a tracheotomy, feeding tube or lengthy hospital stay. It also lessens post-surgical complications, such as difficulty speaking or swallowing. In many TORS cases, we can decrease the amount of radiation therapy and chemotherapy needed as part of the treatment plan and, sometimes, can forgo chemotherapy altogether.
Additional potential benefits of TORS include:
- Excellent resection of cancerous tissue
- Decreased pain and blood loss
- Decreased risk of infection
- Shorter hospital stay
- Quicker recovery time and return to daily activities
- Better preservation of function
- Minimal cosmetic changes
Robotic Surgery for Cancers and Tumors
Robotic surgery offers cancer patients a minimally invasive alternative to open surgery and in some cases, may minimize or eliminate the need for chemotherapy and radiation therapy.