Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgical Radical Prostatectomy (NOTES RP) - Mayo Clinic

Removing the prostate is a common treatment for patients with prostate cancer, which affects one in six men in the U.S. according to the American Cancer Society.

Mitchell Humphreys, M.D., urologist at Mayo Clinic in Arizona states that the latest advances in the surgical treatment of the disease involve using the body's own natural orifices as access points instead of making incisions through the skin. These types of procedures, Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery, or NOTES, have advanced over the past several years.

Now, it is believed for the first time, a NOTES procedure has been perfected to remove the prostate. The unique tools, developed in conjunction with Mayo Clinic in Arizona, are used in a procedure called Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgical Radical Prostatectomy or NOTES RP. The instruments are inserted through the penis and an innovative technique is used to remove the entire prostate. Surgeons then rejoin the internal tissues via specialized instruments designed to work through the urethra. Patients benefit from the procedure because there are no incisions, little risk of bleeding and are usually able to leave the hospital within 24 hours.