Dr. Lee Jin Wook Lee, head of the Thyroid Cancer Center at Ain Hospital, part of the Ain Medical Foundation, has announced a significant milestone: the world’s first SPRA (Single Port Robotic thyroid surgery via Areola approach) has reached 500 cases, demonstrating its clinical success.
Ain Hospital reports that this achievement comes just three years after Dr. Lee pioneered the world’s first single-port robotic thyroid cancer surgery using the lateral areola approach in December 2022.
SPRA is a cutting-edge procedure that removes thyroid cancer through a minimal 2-3 cm incision near the areola, utilizing the da Vinci Single Port (SP) robotic system. This technique minimizes subcutaneous dissection while providing superior visibility compared to traditional robotic thyroid surgeries.
This innovative approach leaves no visible neck scars, balancing functional preservation with aesthetic results. It stands as the only method capable of performing all types of thyroid cancer surgeries with minimal invasiveness among current robotic techniques.
Since developing this surgical method, Dr. Lee has broadened its application to diverse cases, including early-stage thyroid cancer, lymph node metastasis, and elderly patients.
Dr. Lee’s groundbreaking work has garnered international attention, leading to invitations from U.S. and European medical professionals for lectures on the SPRA technique. Last year, surgical teams from Italy, Spain, and other European countries visited Ain Hospital to observe SPRA procedures firsthand.
Dr. Lee explained that SPRA surgery was developed to optimize both aesthetic outcomes and surgical precision, noting that having performed 500 procedures with this pioneering method, the team had established its safety and efficacy. He added that the goal was to set a new global standard for thyroid cancer treatment through continued collaboration with international medical experts and by serving patients at home.