McLaren Macomb, part of statewide McLaren Health Care and a health care provider that has routinely introduced advanced treatment therapies to the community, has expanded its surgical capabilities with the addition of Aquablation Therapy, a treatment for men with benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH), a noncancerous enlargement of the prostate.
McLaren Macomb is the first hospital in Macomb County to offer this technology, the purchase of which was made possible through a generous, six-figure donation by Tom Broad, president of Midwest Steel, to the McLaren Macomb Foundation.
Symptoms of BPH commonly result in frequent and difficult urination in afflicted men, and the unique, next-generation Aquablation Therapy procedure uses a high-pressure, heat-free waterjet to remove enlarged prostate tissue and open a channel to allow for symptom relief.
“This is a procedure designed to enhance patients’ quality of life, while also having been shown to be safe, effective, and efficient,” said Dr. Evan Begun, a urologist at McLaren Macomb. “Many men already living with BPH are on daily medications or still experiencing symptoms of their condition. But it is through the advanced and minimally invasive nature of this procedure that our patients can achieve lasting relief and no longer be forced to make accommodations for their condition in their everyday life.”
Using ultrasound imaging, surgeons map each patient’s unique anatomy and specific condition in order to create a plan for the procedure — targeting tissue for removal while avoiding other tissue.
With the patient under anesthesia, a catheter is inserted into the urethra. Once in place, the high-pressure waterjet oscillates sterile saline water back and forth to remove prostate tissue and widen the channel to allow for enhanced flow during urination. The waterjet is robotically controlled to follow the ultrasound- and computer-assisted mapped parameters, and a camera on the catheter allows the surgeon to monitor the procedure in real time.
Patients typically spend a night in the hospital for observation before returning home the next day, and they can return to normal activities within a few days.
In clinical trials, Aquablation Therapy demonstrated its effectiveness in providing long-term, effective relief from BPH symptoms while also maintaining a low rate of complications.
The most common benign tumor found in men, BPH affects more than 50 percent of men between the ages of 51 to 60. With more than 40 million men projected to reach 60 in the next 10 years, its prevalence will only increase, as will the condition’s quality-of-life-limiting symptoms:
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Weak urinary stream
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Starting/Stopping urination
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Frequent urination
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Urinary incontinence
To learn more about services offered at McLaren Macomb, visit mclaren.org/macomb.
About McLaren Macomb
McLaren Macomb is a 288-bed acute care hospital located in Mount Clemens, Mich. More than 400 physicians and nearly 2,000 employees work at McLaren Macomb making it one of Macomb County’s top employers. McLaren Macomb provides a full range of services, including cancer, surgical services, orthopedics and cardiovascular care. As Macomb County’s first verified trauma center, the hospital operates the busiest emergency department in Macomb County. It is also an accredited chest pain center, a certified primary stroke center and an accredited bariatric and metabolic center. McLaren Macomb is a leader in graduate medical education, offering nine residency programs and three fellowship programs. McLaren Macomb has a rich history of providing high quality, compassionate health care and holds a strong position in the community it serves. Learn more at
mclaren.org/macomb.
About McLaren Health Care
McLaren Health Care, headquartered in Grand Blanc, Michigan, is a $6.6 billion, fully integrated health care delivery system committed to quality, evidence-based patient care and cost efficiency. The McLaren system includes 13 hospitals in Michigan, ambulatory surgery centers, imaging centers, a 490-member employed primary and specialty care physician network, commercial and Medicaid HMOs covering more than 732,838 lives in Michigan and Indiana, home health, infusion and hospice providers, pharmacy services, a clinical laboratory network and a wholly owned medical malpractice insurance company. McLaren operates Michigan’s largest network of cancer centers and providers, anchored by the Karmanos Cancer Institute, a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the U.S. McLaren has 28,000 full-, part-time and contracted employees and more than 113,000 network providers throughout Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. Learn more at mclaren.org.