By 2035, half a million operations a year will be supported by robotic surgery as part of ‘radical plans’ to reduce waiting lists, NHS England has said.
This marks a significant rise from an estimated 70,000 procedures in 2023/24.
NHS England estimated that within the next decade, nine in 10 keyhole surgeries will involve robotic assistance, up from one in five today.
The new NHS England forecast follows the publication of its first national guidance on how robotic programmes should be delivered.
NHS chief executive Sir Jim Mackey said that expanding the use of ‘new and exciting tech such as robotic surgery’ would play a crucial role in reducing elective waiting times.
‘Not only does it speed up the number of procedures the NHS can do, but it also means better outcomes, a faster recovery and shorter hospital stays for patients,’ he said.
Compared to traditional keyhole methods, robotic surgery allows greater dexterity, with instruments controlled remotely by a surgeon using a console and 3D camera. In orthopaedic procedures, robots can be programmed to carry out parts of the operation, increasing precision.
Patients undergoing surgery involving robots are able to recover quicker and be discharged sooner, with some bladder cancer patients discharged within five days – half the typical time for traditional open surgery.
Over the past decade, the use of robotics in surgery has expanded. In 2011/12, urological cancer surgery accounted for 80% of robotic procedures but by 2023/24, this fell to 44% even though the number of operations had increased. This is due to significant growth in areas such as colorectal, gynaecology, ENT, and orthopaedic procedures.
Eleven robotic systems have received conditional approval from NICE: five for soft tissue procedures such as hernia repairs and tumour or gallbladder removals, and six for orthopaedic surgeries.
John McGrath, consultant surgeon at North Bristol NHS Trust and chair of the NHSE Steering Committee for Robotic Assisted Surgery, said the technology improved patient care, eased surgical workloads and increased capacity.
‘Faster recovery and shorter hospital stays are not only hugely important benefits for patients undergoing surgery, if used efficiently they can have a positive impact on the rest of the system by relieving pressure on services and therefore helping to reduce waiting times,’ he said.
‘Robot-assisted surgery can also make complex operations less physically demanding for surgeons, with the potential to reduce strain on surgical teams, allowing a greater number of complex surgeries to be carried out each day,’ added Mr McGrath.
