Bath's RUH trials new ovarian cancer treatment

The trust is one of five in the UK to introduce the PlasmaJet Ultra equipment

Doctors at Bath's Royal United Hospital have introduced new equipment for the targeted removal of ovarian cancer.

The PlasmaJet Ultra uses ionised argon gas to destroy cells during surgery without damaging nearby healthy tissue.

It is hoped the new kit will reduce the amount of time cancer patients will spend being treated in hospital.

"We're now able to vaporise tumour from tissues more precisely," said Jonathan Frost, consultant gynaecological oncologist.

'Quality of life'

"It is an invaluable tool in advanced ovarian cancer, where the tumour is typically found in multiple nodules on the surface of organs and tissues such as the bowel.

"We know that this is going to make such a difference to our patients and their quality of life and we are delighted to be able to offer this advancement in cancer treatment to our patients at the RUH," he said.

Some women undergoing surgery for ovarian cancer need to have parts of their bowel removed in order to fully eliminate the disease.

This can mean further follow-up surgeries, but this tool will reduce the need for stomas in some patients entirely.