Department of General and Abdominal Surgery, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, Colorectal Surgery, Hernia Surgery and Endocrine Surgery - Asklepios Hospital Altona Hamburg

About the Department of General and Abdominal Surgery, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, Colorectal Surgery, Hernia Surgery and Endocrine Surgery at Asklepios Hospital Altona Hamburg

The Department of General and Abdominal Surgery, Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, Colorectal Surgery, Hernia Surgery and Endocrine Surgery at the Asklepios Hospital Altona Hamburg provides the full range of medical services in the areas of its specialization. The medical center performs surgery for diseases of the stomach, colon, esophagus, pancreas, liver, gallbladder, and biliary tract. The department's surgeons also operate on patients with hernias, rectal diseases, anal pathologies, thyroid, parathyroid, and adrenal gland disorders. The specialists have rich clinical experience in the surgical treatment of oncological diseases. More than 80% of surgical interventions are performed using sparing minimally invasive techniques. In addition, the department holds leading positions in the field of da Vinci robotic surgery. The health facility is part of the specialized da Vinci Robotic Surgery Center Hamburg, equipped with the da Vinci Xi system. The team of the department's doctors brilliantly performs robot-assisted interventions for rectal, sigmoid colon, esophageal, and pancreatic malignancies, as well as gastroesophageal reflux disease, diverticular disease, and rectal prolapse. When treating patients diagnosed with cancer, the doctors adhere to an interdisciplinary approach. Twice a week, a tumor board is held here with the participation of surgeons, gastroenterologists, oncologists, radiologists, and radiation therapists. Considering the clinical case of a patient by the interdisciplinary board allows for the development of the most effective treatment regimen, taking into account the slightest details.

The department is headed by Prof. Dr. med. Daniel Perez, a highly qualified surgeon with more than 20 years of successful clinical practice. Prof. Perez is one of the pioneers of da Vinci robotic surgery. He has vast experience in performing such operations and has conducted robotic surgery training for specialists in Germany and in many other countries abroad. Prof. Daniel Perez has a special clinical interest in abdominal cancer surgery and is a Fellow of the European Board of Surgery (FEBS) in Brussels in the field of cancer surgery.

The department's clinical priority area is surgery for gastric diseases, in particular gastric cancer, peptic ulcer disease, gastroptosis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease. Patients with the above-mentioned diseases are diagnosed with the participation of gastroenterologists because gastroscopy (endoscopic examination) is an integral part of the diagnostic process. If gastric cancer is confirmed, surgery to resect the malignant neoplasm or part of the affected organ is the first-line treatment. As for the treatment of gastric ulcers and gastroesophageal reflux disease, these diseases are mostly well treated with drug therapy. A surgical intervention may be required only at advanced stages. The department's specialists operate on patients with gastric diseases using sparing minimally invasive techniques. It is worth noting that the hospital is one of the few in Germany that specializes in da Vinci robotic surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease.

The da Vinci robotic device consists of four main parts: the operating table, robotic arms, an imaging system, and a control console. Each stage of the surgical procedure is controlled by a specially trained surgeon, who is sitting at the control console of the da Vinci robot, sees the surgical field on the monitor in multiple zooms in 3D mode, and gives the robotic system commands, which it carries out with pinpoint accuracy. The use of robotic surgery ensures high precision and low trauma rates, resulting in reduced risks of blood loss, mild pain in the postoperative period, almost zero infection risks, and a significantly shorter hospital stay after surgery.

The department has gained successful experience in the treatment of peritoneal carcinomatosis using the innovative method of cytoreductive surgery in combination with HIPEC (hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy). Peritoneal carcinomatosis is characterized by the appearance of single or multiple malignant tumors in the abdominal cavity against the background of the progression of stomach cancer, colon cancer, rectal cancer, etc. In some situations, the cause of the development of pathology may be directly peritoneal mesothelioma. The department’s surgeons have the necessary technical resources and professional skills to perform cytoreductive surgery in combination with HIPEC. The method involves a maximum surgical reduction in the size of tumors, followed by rinsing the abdominal cavity with a hot solution of chemotherapy drugs. This method makes it possible to achieve long-term remission or a complete cure from oncopathology, while before its advent, patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis were considered hopeless.

Hepatopancreatobiliary surgeons treat liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, liver cysts, portal hypertension, and acute and chronic pancreatitis. The specialists also operate on patients with gallbladder and biliary tract diseases such as cholecystitis, cholelithiasis, and gallbladder cancer. The department's surgeons prefer minimally invasive techniques. When a cancer diagnosis is confirmed, a treatment regimen will be developed at an interdisciplinary tumor board with the participation of surgeons, gastroenterologists, oncologists, radiation therapists, and radiologists. The specialists jointly study the patient’s clinical data and determine the optimal set of therapeutic measures for their clinical situations.

Colorectal surgery is another important area of expertise for the department's doctors. The specialists successfully perform surgery for hemorrhoids, fecal incontinence, anal abscesses, anal fissures, rectal cancer, and rectal prolapse. A large proportion of surgical interventions for proctologic diseases are performed using minimally invasive techniques. If indicated, the surgeons of the department also perform da Vinci robotic surgery for rectal cancer and rectal prolapse.

The department's range of medical services includes the following:

• General and abdominal surgery
  • Surgical treatment of stomach diseases: stomach cancer, gastric ulcer, gastroptosis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease
  • Surgical treatment of colon diseases: colon cancer, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, and diverticular disease
  • Surgical treatment of esophageal cancer
  • Surgical treatment of peritoneal carcinomatosis
• Hepatopancreatobiliary surgery
  • Surgical treatment of liver diseases: liver cancer, liver cysts, and portal hypertension
  • Surgical treatment of gallbladder and biliary tract diseases: gallbladder cancer, cholecystitis, and cholelithiasis
  • Surgical treatment of pancreatic diseases: pancreatic cancer and acute and chronic pancreatitis
• Colorectal surgery
  • Surgical treatment of hemorrhoids
  • Surgical treatment of fecal incontinence
  • Surgical treatment of anal abscesses and fissures
  • Surgical treatment of rectal cancer
  • Surgical treatment of rectal prolapse
• Hernia surgery
  • Surgical treatment of inguinal hernias
  • Surgical treatment of umbilical hernias
  • Surgical treatment of femoral hernias
  • Surgical treatment of incisional hernias
  • Surgical treatment of diaphragmatic hernias
  • Surgical treatment of Spigelian hernias
  • Surgical treatment of pelvic floor hernias
  • Surgical treatment of internal hernias
• Endocrine surgery
  • Surgical treatment of thyroid diseases: hyperthyroidism, goiter, and thyroid cancer
  • Surgical treatment of adrenal cancer
  • Surgical treatment of hyperparathyroidism
• Other medical services