The study involves use of a device called an endomicroscope to obtain high resolution images of microscopic structures during robot-assisted prostate cancersurgery. This feasibility study is largely descriptive, and will use endomicroscopy to document the cellular and architectural appearance of tissue during minimally invasive prostate surgery for later comparison with features seen upon conventional histopathological examination of biopsies or resection specimens.
Prostate surgery requires meticulous dissection around nerves and associated structures such as the bladder, seminal vesicles and vas deferens. Nerve damage during prostatectomy can result in undesirable outcomes such as impotence and urinary incontinence. Robot assisted minimally invasive prostatectomy offers enhanced visualisation of the surgical field. Superior clinical outcomes in terms of length of hospital stay, blood loss, and oncologic margins compared with open surgery are reported. Confocal endomicroscopy provides high resolution subsurface cellular imaging in real time and is already in clinical use in gastroenterology and under investigation in other surgical applications. A potential role exists for confocal endomicroscopy to enhance microscopic nerve identification intra-operatively and guide surgical decision making during robot-assisted prostatectomy.
