Ellie Gabel investigates how robotic surgery and telesurgery are revolutionizing medicine, allowing doctors to perform complex surgeries from thousands of miles away with incredible precision, speed, and safety.
Surgeons traditionally stay in the same room as the patient and have direct contact with the patient during the surgery. Surgical robots have changed that, allowing doctors to perform surgeries even when they are thousands of miles away.
They usually operate the joystick from a remote location and influence the operation of the machine. What are some recent examples and why are they important?
Surgeon provides prostate cancer treatment from 11,000 miles away
Robotic-assisted procedures require a team on-site to monitor the patient, but advances in technology now allow lead surgeons to work from other locations. For example, a surgeon in Ohio operated on a man in the United Arab Emirates.
The surgery used a surgical robot that sends high-intensity ultrasound waves to target the prostate tumor during the ablation treatment. A urology chair sat with the patient in Abu Dhabi, activated a software program, and transferred control to a remote surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic.
Professionals had a seamless experience thanks to an undetectable delay of just 120ms. He reported forgetting even the distance between himself and the patient. The man is currently cancer-free and it is estimated that the surgery has added at least 10 years to his life.
This accomplishment is also notable in that the project’s stakeholders designed it as a real-world example to demonstrate that surgeons can perform these surgeries over landline telephones.
It took two years of planning and testing, plus finding patients willing to undergo the new approach. As a result of his dedication, the operation became the first known example of someone performing it this way.
The surgery used an MRI scan and a robotic platform to examine the prostate in real time. This determined where the ultrasound should be directed to address the tumor with minimal impact on surrounding healthy tissue. The surgeon can also adjust the path of the robotic arm if the patient moves.
Many people live in areas with few or no specialized health care options. Surgical robots expand opportunities by bridging the gap between healthcare professionals and patients.
Robotics improves retinal surgery outcomes
Surgical robots may perform procedures on small or delicate parts of the body, so bulky structures are often impractical for these applications.
Engineers have developed options that operate without external servo drives, allowing designers to optimize mass and volume. These developments make advanced medical methods safer and more attractive to those who need them.
Research published in 2025 shows why many design teams need to make surgical robots smaller and more capable. We also highlight why these innovations are useful for work in the field.
The research team has built a new robotic surgical device for retinal surgery that surgeons can use in the operating room. It attaches to the patient’s head and reduces the surgeon’s movements to fit small target areas.
It also compensates for hand tremors that even the most experienced surgical professionals can experience due to fatigue, anxiety, or unnaturally shaped instruments.
This robot can perform movements of just 1 micrometer. This is particularly useful for retinal cell layers that are less than 1 millimeter thick. The expert controls the machine by operating a tactile interface.
This innovation not only provides greater precision than traditional methods, but also improves patient safety and allows procedures to be performed under intravenous sedation instead of general anesthesia.
Healthcare providers cannot yet use the device commercially, but experiments show its potential. The experts who developed this robot believe it will help surgical professionals keep pace with rapidly advancing vision treatments and improve the quality of life for patients.
This advancement also has the potential to enhance remote surgery by highlighting new avenues to pursue when designing advanced equipment.
Advances in telecommunications enable success over long distances
Robotic surgery has gone mainstream, with more than 1,700 machines under one brand installed in health systems around the world. Progress continues as officials explore operations carried out remotely.
These services support patients who are unable to travel long distances to see a surgeon due to cost, condition-related risks, or other challenges. It also connects local doctors with doctors further afield with expertise in complex cases.
These options benefit from robust communication networks, allowing surgeons to work from remote locations with virtually no delay. In another incident in 2025, a Brazilian doctor performed several inguinal hernia repairs on a Kuwaiti patient.
Those involved with the operation attribute its success, in part, to a high-tech communications network. Digital connectivity made easy with 199ms response time. The Guinness Book of World Records lists this feat as the longest transcontinental robotic surgery.
Recipients of relevant certificates said their achievements demonstrate the possibilities when advanced medicine and technology come together.
An exciting future for patients and healthcare professionals
Medical procedures can be scary for people who need them, but these advances show how remote control and robotic improvements can make surgeries safer and more effective.
When surgery goes more smoothly, many patients can expect a faster recovery and less chance of complications. Surgeons can also benefit by making their expertise available to a wider audience, optimizing treatment, and removing barriers that previously existed.
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