Latest news with #RoyalPapworth
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'Robotic surgery helped me back to the job I love'
A market stall holder has praised robot-assisted surgery for helping her get back to her customers sooner. Charlotte Gregersen, 62, underwent thoracic surgery at Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge to remove metastatic cancer in her right lung. The minimally invasive operation removed a piece of her right lung but meant she could leave hospital the next day - and return to her designer and vintage clothing stall at Cambridge market within a month. "The job I have is quite physical, so I had to make sure I recovered fully," she said. "I love working outside, I love my stall, and I've built up a good clientele that keep me busy." Ms Gregersen's cancer journey began nine years ago and has involved numerous hospital visits for different treatments. She was referred to Royal Papworth where her lung operation was carried out by a surgical team using the Versius surgical robot. She said: "[Mr Aman Coonar] explained that the robotic-assisted surgery would be minimally-invasive and lead to a quicker recovery time. "I had the operation through tiny incisions on the Monday and returned home on the Tuesday, which was very positive." Versius allows surgeons to make tiny incisions to work precisely inside the chest cavity, which can be seen in a magnified 3D view. Mr Coonar said the CMR robot meant patients "generally have little pain". "The system is also portable meaning it can be moved between theatres, which means more teams can use it," he added. "The system is improving all the time and our team is also getting slicker in its use. "As the NHS England national lead for thoracic surgery, I can say that our thoracic surgery teams are committed to improving the care for cancer patients. "We are also proud to be using British designed and British built technology." Royal Papworth became the first UK hospital to use Versius for thoracic surgery in 2023. Since then, surgical teams have used it to perform more than 250 minimally invasive procedures. Massimiliano Colella, chief executive of CMR Surgical said: "Versius was created to bring more patients the benefits of robotic assisted minimal access surgery, so we are delighted to see the tangible positive impact Versius has had for patients like Charlotte, including improved outcomes and quicker recovery times right here in Cambridge." Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. New treatment for heart valve disease in the east Seven lives saved in seven days at Royal Papworth 'Lungs in a box' could increase vital transplants Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
BBC News
09-07-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Robot-assisted surgery helps Cambridge stall holder back to work
A market stall holder has praised robot-assisted surgery for helping her get back to her customers sooner. Charlotte Gregersen, 62, underwent thoracic surgery at Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge to remove metastatic cancer in her right lung. The minimally invasive operation removed a piece of her right lung but meant she could leave hospital the next day - and return to her designer and vintage clothing stall at Cambridge market within a month."The job I have is quite physical, so I had to make sure I recovered fully," she said. "I love working outside, I love my stall, and I've built up a good clientele that keep me busy." Ms Gregersen's cancer journey began nine years ago and has involved numerous hospital visits for different treatments. She was referred to Royal Papworth where her lung operation was carried out by a surgical team using the Versius surgical said: "[Mr Aman Coonar] explained that the robotic-assisted surgery would be minimally-invasive and lead to a quicker recovery time. "I had the operation through tiny incisions on the Monday and returned home on the Tuesday, which was very positive."Versius allows surgeons to make tiny incisions to work precisely inside the chest cavity, which can be seen in a magnified 3D Coonar said the CMR robot meant patients "generally have little pain"."The system is also portable meaning it can be moved between theatres, which means more teams can use it," he added."The system is improving all the time and our team is also getting slicker in its use."As the NHS England national lead for thoracic surgery, I can say that our thoracic surgery teams are committed to improving the care for cancer patients."We are also proud to be using British designed and British built technology." Royal Papworth became the first UK hospital to use Versius for thoracic surgery in then, surgical teams have used it to perform more than 250 minimally invasive Colella, chief executive of CMR Surgical said: "Versius was created to bring more patients the benefits of robotic assisted minimal access surgery, so we are delighted to see the tangible positive impact Versius has had for patients like Charlotte, including improved outcomes and quicker recovery times right here in Cambridge." Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Daily Mail
17-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
More than two thirds of cancer patients waiting over TWO MONTHS to start treatment in parts of England - how does YOUR area fare?
England's 'deadly' cancer treatment postcode lottery was today laid bare in a damning analysis revealing where patients are having to wait months for care. More than two thirds (69 per cent) of patients at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Cambridgeshire had to wait over 62 days to start treatment for their disease after an urgent referral from their GP in April. This was more than double the proportion waiting too long for cancer treatment nationally. By comparison, NHS guidelines state that 85 per cent of patients should start treatments like surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, within two months. Senior cancer doctors said the data highlights the 'frightening truth' that too many patients were experiencing fatal delays. Prompt treatment for cancer is considered critical, with every four weeks a patient is forced to wait, linked to a 10 per cent increase chance of death. Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust ranked second worst in the nation for speedy cancer treatment, with more than half (55 per cent) of patients having to wait at least two months. Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust followed, at 51 per cent of patients and Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust with 48 per cent of patients waiting too long. Joint fifth were Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust in Essex, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. A total of 47 per cent of cancer patients referred by their family doctor for signs of the disease had to wait too long to start treatment at these trusts. Nationally, around one in three cancer patients (30.1 per cent), over 8,000 people, had to wait over two months to start treatment. Reacting to the data top oncologist and co-founder of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign, Professor Pat Price, said: 'This data shows the frightening truth that a third of patients following an urgent GP cancer referral do not get their treatment on time. 'These deadly delays show that the Government needs to urgently invest in cancer treatments.' She added: 'It is still the case that there is a deadly postcode lottery when it comes to cancer treatments. 'For instance, in radiotherapy, despite some investment last year, around half of the cancer treatment machines for radiotherapy are spiralling towards their expiration date.' Despite the NHS target of 85 per cent, this goal hasn't been met since 2015. Rapid access to cancer treatment can boost patient survival as it reduces the chances of a tumour growing larger—which requires more extensive treatment— or the disease spreading to other parts of the body, a far more serious stage. At the opposite end of the scale, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust recorded the highest adherence to the target with 96 per cent of cancer patients starting treatment within two months. This was followed by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust which saw 92 per cent of cancer patients within the 62-day target. Both trusts are specialty hospitals meaning they will generally see fewer cancer patients than a normal NHS trust. The analysis was carried out by medical negligence law firm Patient Claim Line. The firm's senior litigation executive Michael Blakemore-Carson suggested delays could be devastating to patients and potentially costly to the NHS. 'If you have experienced delayed treatment, you could be entitled to make a claim for compensation,' he said. A Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust spokesperson said: We are sorry that too many cancer patients are waiting longer than they should. 'We are working collaboratively internally and with our partner hospitals to make sure referrals reach us earlier, so we can provide the very best, timely care.' A spokesperson for NHS Humber Health Partnerships, which represents Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust and Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, blamed the figures on rising cancer cases in the area. 'We are working hard to minimise delays to our patients who are waiting to start their cancer treatment, and I am sorry some people are waiting longer than we would like,' they said. 'However, we are seeing a striking growth in the number of referrals coming into our hospitals. To try to deal with this we are providing additional "one stop" sessions at weekends, thanks to the help of our medical, nursing and imaging staff.' Stephanie Lawton, chief operating officer at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust also said the trust was working to reduce waiting times for cancer patients. 'We are focusing on initiatives including additional clinical triage of all patient referrals, further diagnostic and outpatient capacity, and a review of our external pathways to support patients requiring onward referral to specialist centres,' she said. 'In some services, we are working on "one-stop" diagnostic capacity, so patients have all their investigations in one visit.' Christine Blanshard, chief medical Officer for Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, also said they were working to make improvements. 'Our priority is to provide the highest possible quality of patient care, and we appreciate how difficult it is for anyone waiting for cancer treatment,' she said. 'We are implementing an improvement plan focused on rapidly reducing cancer diagnosis and treatments times.' Kirsten Major, Chief Executive, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: Reducing the time patients wait for cancer treatment is a top priority and whilst we have more work to do, we have already reduced the wait time by five days following focused work to increase both staffing and capacity over the past year.' Other NHS data shows other cancer targets are struggling to meet ministers' ambitions. The Government has target that by March 2026, 80 per cent of all urgent cancer referrals should be either diagnosed or ruled out within 28 days. But the latest figures show this was only true for 76.7 per cent of patients in April, down from 78.9 per cent in March. Both figures are above the current target of 75 per cent of patients being told they have disease or have it ruled out within this time frame. Another target, that cancer patients should only wait a month from a decision to treat their cancer to starting that treatment was also missed. The NHS only managed to treat 91.3 per cent of cancer patients within 31 days. The target is 96 per cent. Oncologists—doctors who specialise in cancer care—have previously described the continuing failure for the NHS to meet its cancer treatment targets as a 'heartbreaking disaster'. Almost 400,000 cancer cases are diagnosed across the UK each year, with almost 170,000 deaths from the disease recorded per annum. Nearly half of all Britons—45 per cent of men and 43 per cent of women—are expected to be diagnosed with some form of cancer during their lifetime.
BBC News
06-03-2025
- Health
- BBC News
'I bought a Peterborough restaurant from my intensive care bed'
A man who bought a restaurant from his intensive care bed after undergoing a double lung transplant has hosted a fundraising dinner for the hospital that helped to save Kris Bashyal, 46, from Peterborough, was operated on at Royal Papworth Hospital, in Cambridge, in November 2023 after being told it was the "only option" he had to keep his spirits up during his four-month recovery, his daughter - who had taken over the co-running of his existing restaurant - told him about a building she had spotted for is now the new Katmandhu Lounge and it hosted the weekend's fundraiser, which was attended by a hospital medical team who had become "like a family". Mr Bashyal, who also has a son Aryan, 15, spent more than a fortnight in a coma after his transplant as his new lungs struggled to respond, as first reported by the Peterborough was still in intensive care in February and could still barely talk when his daughter Jasmine, now 20, visited him with news that a former bank building would make a good second she left, he searched for the building online, despite being advised against it by medics. 'So proud' "I asked her 'how do you cope with me being ill and running the restaurant - it's quite tough' and she goes, 'I decided not to go to university - I just want to carry on with this business'," said Mr Bashyal."I was searching for the building and one of the consultants said 'do not do anything silly - do not do any stressful work'."I decided to buy it from the ICU bed... I'm so proud of her. "I just wanted to lead by example to my kids, that, no matter what, you still have to put your head up and carry on." Mr Bashyal said he had always tried to remain positive, both in the lead up to his transplant and afterwards. He spent eight months on the transplant list and was called to hospital 12 times. On each occasion he had an hour's notice to say goodbye to loved ones and get to hospital, where he would spend up to 10 hours' preparing for theatre, before the successful transplant finally went businessman had suffered from the autoimmune disease scleroderma - which can cause a thickening in the skin and other tissues - for about 15 the illness, he said his life was relatively normal until he had a third Covid jab which seemed to adversely affect his lungs. Mr Bashyal said he was now committed to raising funds for Royal Papworth and had decided to mark his transplant by now celebrating his birthday in November, when he planned to hold an annual charity Indian and Nepalese restaurant, in Peterborough, will open on Thursday, but Mr Bashyal said it had been important to hold the weekend's fundraiser, which is also running online, and to welcome 12 of his clinicians to celebrate with him."The team at Papworth was fantastic and... I just wanted to do a little bit for them to say thank you," he said."I stayed there for quite a long time - [they] became like a family to me and they were so happy and proud to see me doing really well." Follow Peterborough news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
