“Over the past year, I have also had hernia surgery and had an artificial valve implanted into my heart,” says Begley, who is retired from the New York Stock Exchange. “So I was grateful to hear the positive prognosis.” Now he’s looking forward to relaxing and taking hikes with his wife, Linda, and all five of their grandchildren at their vacation home in New York’s Catskill Mountains.

Using Valley’s latest generation da Vinci® Surgical System, Dr. Agarwal removed Begley’s prostate gland in a procedure called a robotic radical prostatectomy. Dr. Agarwal is one of several Valley urologists trained to operate the da Vinci robot. Because the cancer had not spread beyond the prostate, Begley did not require any chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

“The robot’s specialized instrumentation and enhanced high-definition magnification and technology enabled me to dissect the prostate delicately and to preserve the surrounding nerves, thus reducing the risk of permanent side effects from surgery,” says Dr. Agarwal. Robotic prostatectomy, which is performed through keyhole incisions, also reduces the risk of bleeding and other complications, shortens the hospital stay, and hastens recovery time.

Dr. Agarwal explains that when a man is faced with prostate cancer, the first decision is whether or not to treat the cancer. Sometimes, if the patient is over age 70 or in poor health, “watchful waiting,” where the urologist monitors the patient for any changes, may be recommended.           

“If treatment is best, then the decision between the man and his urologist becomes: seed implant radiation therapy, TomoTherapy, or surgery?” says Dr. Agarwal.

If a man opts for surgery, the choices are a traditional prostatectomy or the robotic procedure. Research studies are ongoing, but recent data suggests that robotic radical prostatectomy is as effective as traditional prostate cancer surgery with a reduced risk of side effects, such as incontinence. “In my practice, many men are choosing robotic surgery once they know that the cancer can be eliminated as effectively with the robotic procedure as it was with traditional surgery.,” Dr. Agarwal says.     “We expect that once more urologists are trained to perform robotic radical prostatectomies and definitive data confirms its effectiveness, then it will become the ‘gold standard’ of surgical treatment for localized prostate cancer,” says Dr. Agarwal.

For patients diagnosed with prostate cancer, The Valley Hospital’s Center for Prostate Cancer offers the most up-to-date information regarding all aspects of prostate cancer and offers an integrated approach to treatment. The Center is located at Valley’s Daniel & Gloria Blumenthal Cancer Center in Paramus.

For more information, or to make an appointment to see the physicians at The Valley Hospital’s Center for Prostate Cancer, please call 201-634-5339.