Frank went the whole night without waking up to pee . . .
Dr Pras Sivam FRACS (Urol)
Urologist, Uro-Oncologist and Robotic Surgeon
Dr Pras Sivam (Prassannah Satasivam) is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and Member of the Society of Urologic Oncology.
Pras grew up in Melbourne and graduated from Haileybury College as Dux of the School in 1998. He joined the University of Melbourne Medical School with a tertiary entrance rank of 99.95. After completing his postgraduate surgical training in Victoria, he accepted a prestigious Fellowship in Urologic Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. This gave him formal training under some of the best urologists in the world. Click here to learn more …
Melbourne Urologist Robotic Prostatectomy Prostate Cancer
Please click here to access detailed descriptions of our more common operations, including robotic prostatectomy, prostate biopsy, vasectomy, stone surgery, TURP and surgery for bladder cancer.
A unique approach
Dr Pras Sivam’s unique approach to robotic prostatectomy combines elements of both the traditional “anterior” and newer “posterior” techniques. This allows his patients recover continence earlier whilst maintaining excellent cancer control.
Early continence recovery
In a recent audit, we found that 39% of our patients achieved continence (0 pads or 1 security pad) within 2 weeks of surgery, and 65 % within 2 months. Few studies have looked at continence this early after surgery, however one large systematic review reported 3-month continence rates ranging from 25% to 90% (1).
Excellent cancer control
In a recent audit, we achieved superior cancer control rates with a positive margin rate of 0% for organ-confined cancer (stage pT2) and 17% for locally-advanced cancer (stage pT3). For comparison, in one large systematic review the average positive margin rate was 9% for pT2 (range: 4–23%) and 37% for pT3 cancers (range: 29–50%) (2).
(1) Ficarra et al. European Urology, Volume 62 Issue 3, September 2012, Pages 405-417.
(2) Novara et al. European Urology, Volume 62 Issue 3, September 2012, Pages 382-404.
Prostate Cancer
Should you have a PSA test? How do we diagnose and treat prostate cancer? How do we manage the side-effects of treatment?
Bladder Cancer
What causes bladder cancer? When must we remove the entire bladder with surgery?
Kidney Cancer
What is the role of biopsy in kidney cancer? Do all kidney tumours need surgery? When can we watch a kidney tumour?
Testis Cancer
What are the symptoms of testis cancer? How is it treated and can it be cured?
Benign Enlarged Prostate
What are the symptoms of having an enlarged prostate? What treatment options are available?
Kidney Stones
What causes kidney stones and what can I do to prevent them? How do we treat kidney stones?
