Rosemary's Story
December 3, 2019Serving Up an Ace with Gyn Cancer Expertise and Robotic Surgery
Rosemary Dawson is a Navy veteran who broke new ground for women in the military by being first to serve as part of her ship’s crew rather than as part of an attached command.
In 2018, the 70-year-old grandmother and avid tennis player had a new battle to fight. She started to experience unusual bleeding, and tests revealed stage 2 uterine cancer that would require surgery.
During her treatment, Rosemary benefited from having a care team with unique combined expertise in gynecologic oncology, robotic surgery and advanced imaging technology to not only remove her cancer in the most minimally invasive way, but also to detect if her cancer had spread to other parts of her body.
Innovating to Make Surgery Safer
Rosemary’s surgeon recommended a minimally invasive total hysterectomy using the da Vinci Xi® surgical robot at Holy Cross Germantown Hospital. To help understand if her cancer had spread, he also incorporated fluorescence imaging to minimize the procedure’s impact on Rosemary’s body and decrease the likelihood of life-changing complications.
“This imaging technology is normally associated with breast cancer but is emerging in other areas because of its benefits,” said James Barter, MD, gynecologic oncology, Holy Cross Germantown Hospital and Holy Cross Hospital, and medical director, Gynecologic Oncology Research Program, Holy Cross Health. “We are an early adopter in our region of using fluorescence imaging during gynecologic cancer surgery.”
Rosemary is grateful that her care plan pushed the envelope. “I really appreciated Dr. Barter’s determination to make this surgery as safe as possible,” she said. “His explanation of the procedure and how it would minimize the risk of complications gave me hope and confidence.”
Dr. Barter used the robot’s Firefly® imaging technology in conjunction with an injected fluorescent dye. This method allowed him to see if cancer was present in Rosemary’s sentinel nodes—an important indicator to determine whether her cancer had reached the lymphatic system.
“If the sentinel nodes are cancer-free, like in Rosemary’s case, the other lymph nodes are healthy and don’t need to be removed,” said Dr. Barter. “This outcome greatly reduces the risk of complications such as lymph-edema, a swelling in the legs that can be very painful and require ongoing treatment.”
Moving Forward Cancer-Free
After spending less than a day at Holy Cross Germantown Hospital following her surgery, Rosemary was ready to continue her recovery at home.
“Everyone was very warm and welcoming,” said Rosemary. “They have everything down to a science, and I felt well taken care of from start to finish.”
“The procedure went superbly well,” added Dr. Barter. “Holy Cross Health is a recognized leader in gynecologic surgery, cancer care and robotic procedures, and this is yet another advance to make treatment safer and easier for our patients.”