TOH edition: Wednesday, 28 October 2026 · Health & Medicine
Specialist surgery could reach beyond where doctors live: a Florida surgeon operated on a cancer patient 35 miles away
Reported by The Guardian
Publisher date:
Dr Vipul Patel remotely removed a 66-year-old cancer patient’s prostate between two Florida hospitals, in what officials described as the first such operation between US hospitals. The investigational procedure offers evidence that surgeons can operate across distance, but wider access, safety and reliability remain under evaluation.
The procedure opens a possible path toward specialist treatment closer to patients’ homes, although it does not establish that telesurgery is ready for general use.
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