"I felt a little nervous, a little apprehensive, but once Dr. Thomas explained to me, it kind of settled my nervous a little bit," said patient Angelina Burkhead.

Burkhead had robotic surgery four weeks ago.

"The concern on my part when she gets ready to schedule for her surgery was because her previous surgical history. She may require manipulations of some tissues," stated Urological Surgeon Jonathan Thomas.

The system called Da Vinci allowed Thomas to see inside her abdomen in a three-dimensional view with the help of the robot's four interactive arms. The images were ten times larger than they actually are.

Doctors say patients recover faster after the surgery. Burkhead only needed pain medicine two days after the surgery, compared to two weeks with traditional surgery. Da Vinci helps patients go home the next day instead of staying in the hospital for three or four days. Some patients can also go back to work two weeks faster.

"After the pain medicine works, it was really not that bad. I mean it was a little uncomfortable, but not like they were making a big incision," explained Burkhead.

University Hospital completed 20 robotic surgeries during the summer. Doctors say the new system does not cost any more than traditional surgery.