"A robot helped remove my womb and cervix, and has eliminated my lifelong endometriosis pain"

A woman who has suffered with horrendous pain from endometriosis for most of her life has been left pain-free after undergoing a robot-assisted hysterectomy.

Katie Titman, aged 42, is the first patient in South Yorkshire to benefit from the surgery, in which a surgeon controls a robot from a console nearby.

Using the robot speeds up recovery and the operation itself, and can achieve more than the human hand with more intricate movements and 360 degree rotation.

Katie, from Lowedges, Sheffield, said: “I was up and about, walking around and undertaking normal day-to-day activities within a week. It’s been much easier than I expected. I don’t feel like I’ve had major surgery at all.

“So far, the pain from the endometriosis has been eliminated. It’s made my life so much easier.”

The average recovery time for a total hysterectomy (removal of the womb and cervix) is six to eight weeks after traditional surgery. 

Katie was “gobsmacked” when she saw the minimal scarring on her abdomen, which left five just five incisions all shorter than one centimetre.

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In 2013, she had some endometrial tissue removed, and has had monthly injections since then to try and manage the pain.

The multi-armed robot allows the surgical team at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals to perform delicate manoeuvres remotely, and provides a magnified, high-definition 3D view of the surgery.

The procedure is set to help hundreds of women suffering with severe endometriosis and other debilitating gynaecological conditions.

Consultant gynaecologist Mr Karim Abdallah, who led the first robotic hysterectomies including Katie’s, said; “The successful introduction of this pioneering surgery is a great stride forward in improving the health and wellbeing of women living with benign yet debilitating gynaecological conditions. 

“Sheffield is the first in South Yorkshire to deliver this cutting-edge surgery which is set to help young, active women who have suffered for many years with conditions such as endometriosis.”