My dad has been on my mind as of late. My father, Dr. Thomas Geocaris, passed away on April 10, 2012, from pancreatic cancer. Even when I'm not consciously thinking about it, memories of him often come to me. He wasn't just my dad but my role model, mentor, and partner. As my dad's been on my mind, I wanted to share some memories of him, how he inspired my career and his legacy in robotic surgery.

Remembering and Learning From My Father
My dad loved being a surgeon and passed that love on to me. It's all I knew growing up, and it's all I ever wanted to be. My dad ran his surgery business out of our house in the early days, and our mom worked as his office manager. I followed in his footsteps and joined him as a partner in 2000, and I had that privilege for 11 years.
My father started his surgery practice in 1976, and I started mine in 2000. What was so great about my dad as a surgeon was that he practiced in what I would call this iconic old-school general surgery. Surgeons still operated using big incisions, but there was still much-developing technology. He taught me a lot about how to do things and all the different ways of doing them. Not only did he teach me about being an excellent surgeon, but he also taught me about being a compassionate surgeon - to treat patients like family.
Between us, we had more than thirty years of experience and were truly able to bring together two different worlds of surgery. We were also fortunate enough to be at the forefront of robotic surgery.
Forging a New Path Together

As I said, my dad operated during a time when most surgeons did so with big incisions. It wasn't until around the 1980s and 1990s that we began performing laparoscopy surgery. Laparoscopic surgery is a minimally invasive surgery where the operation is performed through small incisions using a camera and specialized instruments.
My dad and I were fortunate enough that in 2004, our very kind patient donated a robot to the hospital where we practiced. At that time, robotic surgery, a form of laparoscopic surgery, wasn't really popular. Also, at this time, my dad was in his 60s. Some may not have understood his desire to learn something new, let alone a new surgery technique. My dad didn't care; he chose to learn new technology, and he was great at it. Both of us felt that robotic surgery would be the future of surgery.
Robotic surgery is a form of laparoscopic surgery. It uses finer instruments and provides a 3D visualization of the surgical area. Additionally, it features wristed instruments that mimic hand movements, allowing surgeons to perform increasingly complex procedures with greater precision.
Continuing His Legacy and Forging My Own
I'm proud to say that I'm still deeply involved with robotic surgery, and even more so, as I'm the Medical Director of Robotic Surgery at Theda Clark. This role has allowed me to be instrumental in helping to put robots in all of our hospitals, even helping bring robots to critical access areas or rural hospitals. I've also helped develop 24/7 access to robotic surgery, enabling even emergency procedures to be performed robotically.
All of this wouldn't have happened without my dad. My father encouraged me when he put himself out there late in his career to learn something new, and he passed that torch on to me. For that, I am forever grateful.
My hospital will be getting the newest version of the robotic surgery system this summer, and I'm very excited about it. Patients in our area may not realize it, but we are on the leading edge of robotic surgery in Northeast Wisconsin. Where I practice, we perform 97% of our surgeries robotically, which has improved in the past five years.
Robotic surgery offers numerous advantages, including reduced recovery time, less pain, quicker return to work, and decreased reliance on pain medication. In a prior blog, I discussed the role of robotic surgery in combating opioid dependence. You can read more here about the role of robotic surgery in reducing the need for pain meds and combating opioid dependency.

My Father's Legacy and Pancreatic Cancer
As I said, my dad passed away from pancreatic cancer, a disease he and I treated for many years, and we were the only two surgeons in our area to do so surgically. He died very shortly after retirement.
Pancreatic cancer is currently the fifth most common cancer in the country, and there is no screening for it. If you have a family history, you should talk to your doctor, as there has been a discussion that genetics play a role. We are learning more and more about it, and hopefully, in the next few years, we'll have advancements in screening. In a prior blog, I shared more about my dad's diagnosis and pancreatic cancer awareness.
Up until now, the majority of surgeries on pancreatic cancer used big incisions, including the Whipple surgery. It was always a goal of mine to be able to do Whipple surgery robotically. While I've done thousands of cases robotically, this was one I hadn't yet because when I did, I wanted to ensure things went smoothly and that I had the proper support. It all came together recently, and I performed the first Whipple surgery in Northeast Wisconsin. The surgery went well; the patient did amazing and went home after a few days.
I put the accomplishment of doing Whipple surgery robotically to the memory of my father. I hope he's proud of me because, in my opinion, this is one of the more complex surgeries we do. There are a fair amount of things that could go wrong. When this surgery is done with a big incision, recovery can take months, but by applying robotic technology, the recovery is about 1-2 weeks.
Reflection and Gratitude
It's bittersweet that my dad wasn't around to witness a significant event in my professional career, which wouldn't have been possible without him. I cannot adequately measure or express how much I learned from my father. I'm so grateful to have had him as my role model and mentor. In sharing these memories with you here about my father, I want the care beyond the visit I provide to be not only useful medically but also valuable for life.