How did you finally select your surgeon for robotic surgery?
I am 59 and was recently diagnosed with two Gleason 4+3 scores and two 3+3 after a fusion biopsy. PET scan last week revealed it is contained in the prostate with no spread.
After visiting with two surgeons where I live in Colorado Springs, I am now trying to decide which one to go with. They each have 500+ surgeries under their belt. One of the surgeons operates out of a smaller regional hospital but he seems very passionate about his work and research along with having a good track record. Part of me is tempted to stick with the larger corporate hospital though.
Did anyone here use a smaller hospital and care to share their experience/results?
Hi
great question. While I hope our community members will respond here with their experiences, I wanted to send over these articles as I hope it can help you: https://prostatecancer.net/living/selecting-physician and https://prostatecancer.net/living/selecting-treatment-center. It can be difficult to make a choice, but I think going with your gut is always a good option. Please keep us posted. Jill, prostatecancer.net team 
My decision regarding a surgeon was based on a personal interview with the urologist + the number of robotic surgeries he had performed (over 2,000). I also asked my GP for feedback.
I found significant differences between a major cancer treatment center and a smaller hospital and would not suggest the latter. While passion is great in the end "experience" turned the tables for me. I was dealing with a contained Gleason 9 at the time.
I will add my cancer came back 5 years later and needed to be treated with external beam radiation and Lupron. All went well but 5 years later it was treated with stereotactic radiation. Prostate cancer is a challenging disease and making choices on providers and facilities is never easy. In the end, my advice to every patient is ... follow your gut feelings, make a decision, and don't look back and regret it. Dennis (ProstateCancer.com TEAM)
