“Rebuilding” a New Life: Xinhua Urology Performs China's First Orthotopic Neobladder Using Domestic Split-Type Robot

The urology team led by Cui Xingang at Xinhua Hospital has successfully completed China's first totally laparoscopic radical cystectomy combined with pelvic lymph node dissection and orthotopic ileal neobladder reconstruction performed with a domestically developed split-type surgical robot. Integrating radical tumor resection, lymph node dissection, urinary tract reconstruction and functional preservation, the procedure is recognized as one of the most complex and difficult operations in urology. The patient, Mr.

Yu in his 50s, had already undergone two transurethral resections of bladder tumor and four courses of chemotherapy at another hospital, yet the disease recurred; he hoped to urinate spontaneously like a healthy person after surgery. With the robot's high-definition three-dimensional view and the flexible layout of its split-type arms, Cui, together with chief physician Shen Haibo and associate chief physician Xu Ding, overcame a narrow pelvis and difficult anastomosis, systematically completing bowel harvest, reservoir formation, and urethral and ureteral anastomosis. The patient was able to get out of bed 24 hours after surgery and was discharged smoothly after recovering bowel function in under 48 hours.