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The University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) is looking to expand its robotic-assisted surgery work to deliver more potentially life-saving surgeries with better outcomes for patients.

 The hospital group has already delivered 1,500 robotic-assisted operations for patients with colorectal, urological, head and neck, and gynaecological cancers, since it started surgery in 2022. Its first operations using a robot were delivered at Northampton General Hospital in March 2022 with Kettering General Hospital following suit using a second robot in August 2025.

 To mark the achievements so far an event is being held for surgeons and their teams on Friday, May 15, at the Cripps Centre at Northampton General Hospital.

 UHN's Robotic Surgery Lead, Mr Jamil Ahmed, said: “The event will be about celebrating some of the incredible progress we have made in robotic-assisted surgery over the last four years and making it clear that robotic-assisted surgery is now a central feature of modern surgical practice at our hospitals.

 “We now have 13 consultants who are fully robotically trained across the sites in various specialities. We also have one fully trained Surgical Care Practitioner (SCPs) and over 10 resident doctors and robotic fellows, who are very competent in assisting robotic cases as bedside assistants.” Most of the hospitals' theatre staff are also trained to work as a team to perform robotic-assisted surgery (RAS) across the two sites

 Patients describe benefits of robot surgery

 Patients who have had robotic-assisted surgery have described their experience and highlighted how operation wounds are smaller, heal faster, and enable precise surgery with better outcomes.

 Retired building surveyor Peter Stephens had robotic surgery for bowel cancer last October at Northampton General Hospital and has said the care he received was brilliant.

 The 78-year-old, from West Haddon, who is married to Karen and has one grown-up daughter Rachel, said: “A friend of mine who is a consultant suggested I have tests because I was at an age where things happen, and I am glad I did.

 “I had blood tests and did a faecal sample and then had a colonoscopy where they found I had a large 4cm polyp which was found to be cancerous.

 “The operation was explained to me in a very clear and caring way. I chose to have the robotic-assisted operation because it was explained that it is less invasive, recovery time is faster, it is more accurate, well-lit, and the surgeon can see a magnified view of what he is doing.”

 Mr Stephens tumour was removed but he had to have follow-up chemotherapy to ensure all the cancer cells were gone which finished on March 3.

 He said: “I am feeling much better now and getting stronger all the time. I can't say enough about how kind and supportive my surgeon and the specialist nurses were.”

 Patricia Green, 78, from Duston, had been in pain for two years before the cause - bowel cancer - was discovered and she had her robotic-assisted operation at NGH.

 Mrs Green, who has two children and four grandchildren, had a family history of bowel cancer and was admits she thought she was 'finished' when she got the diagnosis.

 She said: “But they said to me no, we can take out the cancer and put you back together and you can just go on and live your life.

 “I was so pleased. I really just wanted to live. The team who did the operation are just brilliant. I have had some pain and tenderness in the month since my operation but I am getting better and I drove my car again for the first time on April 30.”

Paul Sexton, 76, from Lyndon near Oakham, had a diagnosis of cancer in his colon in November after a faecal test and a colonoscopy.

 Mr Sexton, a retired leather merchant, who has three children and three grandchildren, had his robotic-assisted bowel cancer operation at Kettering General Hospital in December last year.

 He said: “I listened to the doctor's advice and was absolutely sure the robotic assisted operation was the best way to address my cancer.

 “I went in for my operation on Monday and was out by the end of the week. Because it was a robotic key-hole operation it was less invasive and even though it was major surgery I made a very good recovery in the first week. I will continue to be monitored for five years but the results are looking good.”

 How the surgery happens

.Robotic-assisted surgery involves a surgeon using an 'octopus-like' surgical robot.

 This has multiple arms that can guide instruments inside the patient's body using very small key-hole incisions and deliver operations with very precise movements.

 The surgeon uses a console which translates the surgeon's hand movements into the precise use of surgical instruments while special eyepieces allow excellent magnified 3D views of what each instrument is doing. 

 Hence the surgeon is in control of the robot rather than the robot doing the surgery on its own.

 Mr Ahmed, who is also a UHN Deputy Director of Medical Education and a consultant colorectal surgeon, added: “Robotic-assisted surgery has many benefits for our patients.

 “It enables small incisions, precise work in hard-to-reach areas, faster recovery and much less need to travel out-of-county for cancer surgery.

 “The more work we do the more skilled and experienced our teams become so we are looking to expand and provide the very best surgical care for patients in Northamptonshire and potentially beyond.”

 The Trust is using two da Vinci XI surgical robots to deliver state-of-the-art procedures across both of our hospital sites with more than 9 to 12 operations being delivered across the two sites each week.

 Mr Ahmed said: “The types of cancer surgeries that are most effectively performed using robotic systems include those for prostate cancer, kidney cancer, colorectal cancers, endometrial cancer, and cancer at the base of the tongue.

 “We are aiming to further expand robotic services into complex abdominal wall reconstruction, complex endometriosis, complex upper GI and pelvic floor problems, along with selected emergency surgeries and we will need to acquire a third robot in the future to offer these procedures.”

  UHN's Group Medical Director, Hemant Nemade, said: “Robotic-assisted surgical techniques are the future of surgery for treating many conditions.

“It is being increasingly used across a wide range of specialties with multiple benefits for patients and for surgical teams.

 “Our ambition is to become a key provider of robotic-assisted surgery in the region and to lead the way in providing the kinds of innovative surgery this technology enables.”