Robotic surgery expertise increases odds for those who battle stomach cancer like Toby Keith

Toby Keith, John Wayne and Fred Rogers are among many famous figures who passed from stomach cancer, a particularly deadly form of  cancer. Now, robotic surgery is improving the odds for cancer patients.

Matthew Porembka, M.D. is part of a team of experts at UT Southwestern in robotic gastrectomy – both partial and total removal of the stomach.  The robotic approach allows them to remove the stomach cancer through smaller incisions that allows for quicker recovery and improved ability to restart their therapy. 

For patients that have their entire stomachs removed, Dr. Porembka uses the small intestine to reconnect the GI tract.  In general, recovery is faster with robotic surgery and they are back to work in about 2-3 weeks.  

Dr. Porembka works closely with Sara Pirzadeh-Miller, Associate Director of the Cancer Genetics Clinic at Simmons Cancer Center to identify patients at risk of gastric cancers and recommend genetic testing. The clinic sees patients with a personal history of cancer; a significant family history of cancer; or a known genetic predisposition to cancer. 

Please contact Lori Soderbergh for interviews, [email protected].