THREE patients with throat cancer are recovering well after surgeons used pioneering robot technology for the first time in the region.

The £2m Da Vinci robot was used by Vinidh Paleri and David Meikle, consultants in head and neck surgery at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle.

No other multi-discipinary cancer centre in the UK has carried out procedures of this kind using the TORS (Transoral Robotic Surgery) equipment.

The surgeons carried out robotic surgery to remove cancers of the tonsil, base of the tongue and larynx on the same day.

Microscopic examination has confirmed complete removal of the cancers and all three patients are said to be recovering well.

The Freeman Hospitals Da Vinci Robot is the first of its kind in the North-East, allowing surgeons to carry out complex operations with extreme provision.

The Da Vinci robot uses tiny instruments, which have an even greater range of motion than the human hand.

By guiding the surgery from the command console, surgeons use 3-D imaging and instruments attached to the robotic arms, which improves precision when removing the cancer.

This new technique reduces complications and speeds up recovery times.

Mr Paleri said: "It allows us to remove tumours and treat non-cancerous conditions affecting often very tricky to get to areas, without the need for major surgery which can mean ear-to-ear incisions across the throat, or in some cases splitting the jaw, resulting in speech and swallowing problems.

"It means that we can carry out surgery via the mouth, using less operating time, reducing the impact on speech and swallowing, and patients have been able to leave hospital much more quickly. It also reduces the need for and the dose of radiation therapy."