Providence Swedish is home to some of the most advanced surgical techniques and surgeons in the country. The many innovative procedures at Swedish are changing patients’ lives. One of these recent surgical advancements is Aquablation, a new method for the surgical treatment of enlarged prostate (BPH). It uses a water jet to remove excess prostate tissue. “We insert a small camera and a water jet in the urethra then we use ultrasound imaging to map the size, contour and other characteristics of the prostate gland and then turn the water jet on,” said Trevor Bennett, associate vice president of acute care operations and executive director of surgical and interventional services at Providence Swedish. The treatment is heat-free and typically takes less than an hour. It also preserves sexual function and requires only one night in the hospital after treatment. Another advancement allows for breast lesions to be marked for surgical removal without using traditional surgical wires. Surgeons now can place a tag the size of a staple on the lesion using a needle. “The ability to use this technology gives us the ability to remove tumors with smaller biopsies while maintaining cleaner margins, thus preserving as much breast tissue as possible,” Bennett said. Swedish was founded over a century ago by Dr. Nils Johanson who wanted Swedish to provide some of the most advanced care in the Pacific Northwest, and that has been the mission ever since. “You could say that immediately when we were founded, it was impregnated in our DNA of being an innovator in the space,” Bennett said. Swedish’s world-class surgeons and large size and scope contribute to this culture of advanced care for patients and allow Swedish to offer nine robotics platforms and procedures like histotripsy. Swedish First Hill was the first hospital on the West Coast to offer this treatment to people with liver cancer. Histotripsy uses ultrasonic waves that destroy cancer cells with bubble clouds. It does not require an incision, has no side effects and requires minimal recovery time. It can be used for people who are not surgery candidates or who have tried other treatments without success. “Because of the success we’ve had with histotripsy over the last year, our lead histotripsy surgeon, Dr. Evan Ong, was just named the physician of the year for the Puget Sound Business Journal and has now completed more cases than any surgeon worldwide,” Bennett said. To learn more about surgical innovations at Providence Swedish, visit the Providence Swedish website or the Providence Swedish blog. Sponsored by Providence Swedish Segment Producer Suzie Wiley. Watch New Day Northwest at 11 a.m. weekdays on KING 5 and streaming live on KING5.com. Contact New Day.