1992

A surgeon, an assistant and a patient to undergo a gall bladder operation. The latest keyhole surgery, involving a rod-shaped camera and chunky, clumsy instruments. Temperamental technology with a tube-shaped field of vision and a highly pixellated image. The question of whether to open up or to continue continues to crop up. But progress was motivating. It’s incredible how quickly the patient was back on his feet, how low the pain burden and how quickly he returned to work. One thing’s for sure: this method has incredible potential! If only it were easier, the technology more reliable, the instruments more elegant and well-designed, the hands more practised.

2012

The same surgeon, now with grey hair. The same assistant, now married with children. Intricate abdominal cancer surgery. The same keyhole access. Perfect technology, incredible image quality on a cutting-edge screen. Incision using an ultrasound scalpel, little blood, precise and fast. Suture with the latest-generation staple suture equipment. Where were the small degrees of progress made? When did they occur? The surgeon is not aware of them – progress is simply a given. Abdominal laparotomy? Very rare!

The past 20 years of technical advances have resulted in a revolution that benefits everyone.