Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for laryngo-pharyngeal cancer - Experience of attending TORS advanced course

Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) was developed by Weinstein as a minimally invasive surgery mainly for laryngo-pharyngeal cancer. Da Vinci surgical system is a robot which enables to perform surgery safely and precisely under 3D vision. Since TORS had been cleared by FDA in 2009, it has been spreading explosively all over the world. However, it has not been approved by Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) in Japan. We have attended the advanced course of TORS training held in Yonsei University prior to start the clinical trial of TORS and have performed radical tonsillectomy, tongue base resection, supraglottic laryngectomy, and piriform sinus resection for a cadaver. It was easy to adapt the movement of Da Vinci and transoral anatomy was a key to perform TORS safely. PMDA approval is desired in the otolaryngological field.