Intuitive Surgical Sponsors New Women's Cancer Research Database in Collaboration With the Society of Gynecologic Oncology

June 9, 2014 at 8:30 AM EDT

SUNNYVALE, Calif., June 9, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Intuitive Surgical (Nasdaq:ISRG) announced today it will join a group of industry supporters of a new clinical outcomes registry. This new database, called the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) Clinical Outcomes Registry, or SGO COR, will be managed by the SGO to support the efforts of those working to improve women's healthcare using comparative effectiveness research. Researchers will be able to access SGO COR to compare surgery and treatment-related data for three specific diseases: endometrial, ovarian and cervical cancer.

"We wholeheartedly believe that this initiative will make a significant impact on the future of women's healthcare and the fight against women's cancer," said SGO Executive Director Mary C. Eiken, MS, RN. "SGO COR will provide researchers the opportunity to use data to foster quality and patient safety improvements. The registry will be a valuable resource for clinical effectiveness research and risk modeling through establishment of international, national and regional benchmarks."

The SGO developed SGO COR and will manage it without industry involvement. With five sites having completed alpha testing, the registry is now moving into beta testing and will be available to all SGO members in fall of 2014.

As one of several industry supporters, Intuitive Surgical will provide financial support but will have no input or control over SGO COR data.

"This initiative is designed to help those working to improve quality and performance-related measures such as surgery-related complications, conversion to alternative approaches, recovery and readmission rates," said Myriam Curet, MD, Senior Vice President, Chief Medical Officer at Intuitive Surgical. "We are excited about the opportunities this project provides to help improve women's healthcare. This database also has the potential to be a powerful tool for clinical research for data analysis and publishing. We are confident it will help demonstrate the value of minimally invasive surgical techniques to patients and payers in the new health care environment."

About Intuitive Surgical, Inc.

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (Nasdaq:ISRG), headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., is the global leader in robotic-assisted, minimally invasive surgery. Intuitive Surgical develops, manufactures and markets the da Vinci® Surgical System. Intuitive Surgical's mission is to extend the benefits of minimally invasive surgery to those patients who can and should benefit from it.

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Intuitive Surgical, Inc.