Professor Abbas E. Abbas: what the next generation of surgical robots is going to be?

On the 4^th International Westlake Forum on Thoracic Tumors held in Hangzhou, China on November 13^rd, we were honored to have an interview with Professor Abbas E. Abbas from the Temple University Hospital of United States. Professor Abbas is one of the surgeons who first performed robotic thoracic surgeries, and he thinks robotic surgery provides significant benefits to both patients and surgeons. Now more and more techniques marry robotic techniques to achieve a better development, for example the imaging marries robotic technique to better identify and localize a tumor. Regarding the next generation of surgical robots, Professor Abbas introduced the research program on tactile feedback of surgical robots conducted by his university.

As to the questions “How to balance the clinical, academic and educational work of a busy thoracic surgeon?”, “How to define an excellent surgeon?”, Professor Abbas said, “A surgeon must have integrity and really look closely at what they are providing.” Hope this is helpful and inspiring to the young surgeons on the road of growth.

For more details, please enjoy the interview as follows (Figure 1).

Figure 1 Interview with Professor Abbas E. Abbas (1). Available online: http://www.asvide.com/articles/855

Introduction

Dr. Abbas is Associate Professor of Surgery and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at Temple University School of Medicine and Hospital (Figure 2). Certified by both the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, he earned his medical degree from Ain-Shams University School of Medicine in Cairo, Egypt. He achieved his General Surgery training at Pennsylvania Hospital, University of Pennsylvania Health System. Afterwards, he completed a fellowship in Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Since then, he has held several leadership positions at different academic institutions. Dr. Abbas has extensive expertise in robotic surgery for mediastinal, esophageal and lung disease. He has authored numerous papers and chapters in the fields of thoracic surgery and minimally invasive surgery and is frequently invited to speak at National and International meetings. His research includes ongoing studies in robotic thoracic surgery, esophageal dysmotility, gastroesophageal reflux disease and cryospray ablation.

Figure 2 Professor Abbas E. Abbas, Associate Professor of Surgery and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at Temple University School of Medicine and Hospital.

Interview questions

• In your speech “Utilizing robotic surgery for locally advanced lung cancer”, what are the key messages that you would like to convey?
• Robotic surgery represents one of the major new trends of minimally invasive surgery, how do you look at the future of robotic technique?
• In your opinion, what the next generation of surgical robots is going to be?
• How long have you been a thoracic surgeon? At the very beginning, what have driven you to become a thoracic surgeon?
• How many robotic surgeries have you done so far? Is there any impressive case that has brought you some inspirations?
• As a thoracic surgeon, how do you balance your clinical, academic and educational works as well as your personal life?
• How do you define an excellent surgeon?

Acknowledgements

None.

Footnote

Conflicts of Interest: The author has no conflicts of interest to declare.

References

1. He CX. Interview with Professor Abbas E. Abbas. Asvide 2016;3:101. Available online: http://www.asvide.com/articles/855

[Science Editor: Chao-Xiu (Melanie) He, JOVS, hecx@amegroups.com]