Training session in Madrid

Today I had the pleasure of hosting Dr. Pedro López Cueto, from Puerto Vallarta, in Mexico. He is going to pioneer PVP in his country, being the first mexican urologist to adopt Greenlight PVP.
He came over to Madrid driving all the way down from Paris. We met at the EAU congress and he had a strong interest to come and see a PVP procedure performed by an expert. We spent some time together discussing the basics of lasers and their interaction with tissue, and the specific technical aspects of the Greenlight PVP procedure. We had one patient scheduled, who had a 110 gram prostate. So he had a chance to see a difficult case. We discussed all the tips and tricks and he was amazed of seeing a fantastic result in a patient with a relatively big prostate. The patient was discharged later that day and we went to have dinner together. We had four additional cases scheduled the following day, but unfortunately he had to go back to his country. I enjoyed very much his company and I can see he will become an important man in his country. He mentioned he would try to invite me to participate and perform a live PVP at the National Congress in Mexico in November.

European Association of Urology Congress, Paris

This month I attended the European Association of Urology Congress, in Paris. The most important urology meeting in Europe. It is always exciting to go and witness the recent advances in urology. There were a number of papers on Greenlight PVP, all very positive. I did not have time (I am quite busy, as you know) to prepare a paper for this congress, but I will do so at the American Urological Association - AUA Congress that will take place in Atlanta next month. I have also been invited by laserscope to lecture during the pre-congress and congress. I also participated in a meeting of the Multimedia office of the European Association of Urology, as a member of this office. And as faculty member of the European School of Urology, I directed a course on Multimedia and Urology. My presentation can be seen online in webcast format at : http://webcasts.prous.com/eau2006/article.asp?AID=242&CID=YY&CLID=2

Puigvert Foundation

This thursday I took a plane to Barcelona to help the urologists from the prestigious Puigvert Foundation to perform their first cases of Greenlight Photoselective Vaporization of the Prostate. This Puigvert Foundation is one of the most prestigious urological centres in europe, and they have decided to embrace Greenlight PV.
The surgical session was uneventful and I really enjoyed it. We operated three patients with relatively small prostates. One of them was a high risk patient. I then found out that the immediate postoperative recovery was very good, and that all patients were sent home without a catheter. All urologists that see this procedure live for the first time are amazed by the great advantage of operating patients with BPH without blood loss and by the extraordinary endoscopic result. I then went to the airport and took a flight to Paris, to participate at the Europan Urological Association annual congress.

South Africa Roadshow - Durban

At last we arrived at Durban. This time we took it easy as there was only one lecture scheduled. Durban is also a very attractive city from South Africa. I had the chance to walk in the beach for some time. The lecture had a great impact and most urologists working in Durban attended. PVP (Greenlight Photovaporization of the Prostate) has generated a great interest in South Africa, because while in countries as Denmark, where PVP is being performed in 14 out of 17 urology departments in that country, in South Africa this laser has just started its distribution by a prestigious company in South Africa, TecMed. These urologists were really anxious to get to know more about this technique they have read so much about. The discussion was very intense and the interest was really high.

So, this is the end of my trip to South Africa. I am very happy that I had a chance to get to know this wonderful country, and also because I have contributed to make PVP better known by my South African colleagues. I am sure also South African patients will start to benefit from it soon. I will return to Johannesburg tomorrow, where I will stay another day prior to returning to Madrid this Sunday. On Monday I will fly to Barcelona, where I will mentor the urologists from Fundació Puigvert, another very prestigious urology center that has decided to adopt PVP. That same day I will fly to Paris, to participate in the European Urological Association congress, where I am chairing a course of the European School of Urology.

South Africa has impressed me deeply. After drinking the waters of the zambeze, I think I will never be able to quench the thirst for Africa. I will never forget the night I spent with the lions, their flashy eyes and their overwhelming roars...