A Tampa woman has become the first patient in West Central Florida to undergo a robotic-assisted nipple-sparing mastectomy, an eight-hour procedure that combined tissue removal and breast reconstruction into a single operation. Kim Kirtley, who had the surgery in July 2026, says her recovery has been smooth and that she never even touched her pain medication.
Kirtley’s surgery was performed by BayCare Medical Group surgeons at St. Joseph’s Women’s Hospital in Tampa, according to FOX 13 Tampa Bay. Dr. Robert Gabordi, a BayCare Medical Group breast surgical oncologist and medical director of BayCare’s St. Joseph’s Hospitals breast surgery program, performed the operation, making it the first robotic-assisted nipple-sparing mastectomy in Tampa Bay. Per BayCare leaders, the health system is among the first in Florida — and the first in West Central Florida — to offer the procedure.
The technology behind the surgery is a single-port robot containing a camera and two or three robotic arms, which the surgeon controls to remove breast tissue with precision, the station’s report notes. Gabordi said the technology allows for careful dissection and surgery under enhanced visibility, and the report describes robotic technology as providing greater visibility and dexterity than surgeons can achieve without it.
A Smaller Incision, A Bigger Recovery Win
Single-port robotic technology requires an incision as small as 2.5 centimeters, per the same account. That precision is possible because the approach uses carbon dioxide insufflation and a lateral incision near the axillary fold, which allows high-definition 3D visualization that helps preserve microvascular blood supply to the skin and nipple-areolar complex, according to Mayo Clinic. Preserving that blood flow matters because it reduces the risk of tissue death during recovery, a key concern in any nipple-sparing procedure…