Transoral robotic surgery (TORS)
Removing throat tumours through the mouth with a robot instead of splitting the jaw, allowing many patients to avoid or reduce radiation.
FDA-cleared 2009 for T1-T2 oropharyngeal tumours. Enables primary surgical management of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer with pathology-guided adjuvant de-escalation (ECOG 3311). ORATOR trials found comparable oncologic outcomes to radiation with different toxicity profiles (swallowing favoured radiation in ORATOR; ORATOR2 halted after surgical deaths). Selection and surgeon volume matter.
How it works
Da Vinci or Flex robot instruments and a 3D endoscope pass through a mouth retractor to resect the tumour with margins; neck dissection is done separately.
- Avoids mandibulotomy and tracheostomy
- Pathology-based selection of adjuvant therapy
- Bleeding risk, swallowing morbidity
- Not superior to radiation in randomised comparison for function
Latest papers
topQuery for this technology: (TITLE:"Transoral robotic surgery" OR ABSTRACT:"Transoral robotic surgery" OR TITLE:"TORS" OR ABSTRACT:"TORS") AND (cancer OR tumor OR tumour OR oncology OR carcinoma OR lymphoma OR leukemia OR leukaemia OR myeloma OR sarcoma OR melanoma OR glioma). Results are unfiltered search hits about Transoral robotic surgery (TORS), not a curated reading list.