This article is an excerpt from a TV3 news article. Watch the video and transcript here
New Zealand has a new weapon in the fight against oral cancers. A team in Auckland has carried out the country's first robotic surgery to remove a throat tumour.
The technique is widely used overseas, and is now available to oral cancer patients here, meaning less invasive treatment and faster recovery.
"The advantage of the robot is that we access it through the mouth, exorcise the cancer through the mouth, and then let the body heal from the inside out," says Dr Andrew Cho.