San Francisco, Dec 1 : Eminent robotic surgeon Dr Adeel Khan from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis received first place in the Vattikuti Foundation KS International Innovation Awards 2023. He received the award for the submission of a robot-assisted liver transplant on a 68-year-old male with hepatitis C related cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma from a deceased donor. The entry of Dr Ahmed Ghazi, Director of Minimal Invasive and Robotic Surgery and Director of Simulation Training at Johns Hopkins University, US was adjudged second place for devising a novel patient specific simulation platform before complex robotic renal cancer surgeries. Third place was awarded to Dr Sandeep Nayak from MACS Clinic and Fortis Cancer Institute, Bengaluru for devising a novel approach for removal of thyroid tumours using minimally invasive robotic surgery. The winners were announced at the Vattikuti Foundation KS International Innovation Awards 2023 with robotic surgeons from 10 specialties and featured in the accompanying academic symposium, Humans at the Cutting Edge of Robotic Surgery, held from October 6-8 in Ghent, Belgium with over 150 attendees. Dr Mahendra Bhandari, CEO, Vattikuti Foundation, presented the top award at a special event honouring Dr Adeel Khan. 'By focusing on robotic technology and surgeon education, the Vattikuti Foundation has proven the transformative power of innovative technology in revitalizing patients' health at the hands of inventive humans,' said Raj and Padma Vattikuti, who founded the Vattikuti Foundation. Dr Khan and his team were celebrated by several eminent surgeons from the School of Medicine, including Dr John Olson Jr., the William K. Bixby Professor and chair of the Department of Surgery; Chief Medical Officer of Washington University Physicians Dr Sam Bhayani; and Dr William Chapman, section chief of abdominal transplant surgery. Dr Khan's entry described the pioneering robot-assisted liver transplant (RLT) in the US, using a deceased donor procedure that he and his team performed at the School of Medicine in May 2023. The submission of this procedure is expected to be of immense value to robotic surgeons as well as the field of transplantation surgery using the power of advanced technology. The annual competition is held in the memory of Krishnaswamy Subrahmaniam remembered as 'KS'. He is known as an extraordinary human at the cutting edge for his outstanding contribution to the establishment and progress of robotic surgery in India. /IANS