An Unexpected Discovery
Few people will tell you that getting food poisoning was a good thing. But for Duston, that is exactly the case.
In early July 2011 Duston ate something that “had been in the car a little too long.” Shortly thereafter, he began vomiting and had some unusual pain in his abdomen. He went to the ER and, as a precaution, had a CT Scan.
Duston could not believe what the scan found: he had a tumor on his kidney. He was immediately admitted to the hospital for more testing and determine the best course of treatment.
Initially, Duston was told that he would need to have his entire kidney removed. The thought of losing his entire kidney was frightening to this 38-year-old father of two, though. So he did some research and learned that he may be a candidate for a partial nephrectomy. His doctor agreed and referred him to Ali Sarram, MD, a board-certified urologist at Advanced Urology who has performed hundreds of minimally invasive partial nephrectomies.
Dr. Sarram and Duston discussed the treatment options, and it was clear that the robotic partial nephrectomy was ideal. Using robotic technology, Dr. Sarram would make 4 small incisions and use micro instruments to remove the diseased portion of Duston’s kidney. This procedure has many benefits over other surgeries:
- Excellent clinical outcomes and cancer control
- Short hospital stay
- Low blood loss
- Precise tumor removal and kidney reconstruction
- Greater chance of preserving the kidney, in certain cancer operations
- Fewer surgical complications
Duston had surgery on August 29 and was home within 3 days. Within the first week of his recovery, this avid golfer was on the putting green again. He was able to pick up his 14-month-old daughter after two weeks and was caring for his lawn soon after. His surgical incisions were completely healed within three weeks, as well.
“I was expecting the recovery to be much tougher,” explained Duston. “At this point, my limitations are more mental than physical. I am very thankful to Dr. Sarram and his team.”
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