Watch Now: Children After Cervical Cancer

Anaelvys Espinoza-Ruiz was engaged to be married when she found out she had cervical cancer. While the removal of her uterus and cervix through a hysterectomy was considered the most successful treatment for her diagnosis, gynecologic oncologist Ricardo Estape, M.D., of Baptist Health’s Center for Robotic Surgery, suggested Ms. Espinoza-Ruiz should have a robot-assisted trachelectomy. This option allowed the cancerous cervix to be removed, but preserved her fertility and ability to carry a pregnancy.

Remarkably, Ms. Espinoza-Ruiz went on to have two children – Justin and Melanie.

With the groundbreaking of Miami Cancer Institute on the Baptist Hospital campus, stories like Ms. Espinoza-Ruiz’s will play out more and more often, as the latest research in the detection and treatment of cancer will happen at the new facility, scheduled to open in 2016.

Tags: Baptist Health Center for Robotic Surgery, Miami Cancer Institute, Ricardo Estape M.D., robotic surgery, South Miami Hospital