Research descriptions
As one of the world’s most experienced colorectal surgeons, Dr. Marks has performed nearly 4,000 minimally invasive colorectal cancer surgeries, including more than 2,000 rectal cancer procedures. Dr. Marks’ research and educational programs focus largely on minimally invasive laparoscopic and robotic colorectal surgery featuring radical sphincter preservation resection for rectal cancer after neoadjuvant therapy, one of the largest series of its kind in the world.
He champions Full Thickness Local Excision (FTLE) by the Transanal Endoscopic Microsurgical (TEM) method following neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer and has performed over 450 TEMs to date. Dr. Marks remains on the leading edge of advancements in colorectal surgery, having performed over 350 single-incision laparoscopic surgeries (SILS).
He is currently collaborating on applications for robotic single port surgery to expand endoluminal and SILS for a variety of pathologies and Lankenau will be one of the first three centers in the world to have the new SP robot. With Dr. Marks leading Lankenau Medical Center, one of four academic colorectal robotic Epicenters in the country, he has performed over 300 surgeries with the da Vinci Surgical System Si and Xi robots and the newest SP robotic system.
Dr. Marks worked with Intuitive to develop colorectal operations using the SP robot. Examples of his leadership in this field include training surgeons in Hong Kong and performing the first SP robot cases in the western hemisphere. He and his colleagues frequently publish findings from a robust and rigorously maintained patient database, including a 2017 report of low local recurrence and excellent 5-year survival in 373 patients undergoing transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME) for rectal cancer.
Dr. Marks’ experience in advanced rectal cancer surgery led to Lankenau being selected in 2018 to participate in a 5-year multicenter phase II study of taTME.
Dr. Marks recently published a book “Surgical Techniques in Rectal Cancer – Transanal, Laparoscopic and Robotic Approach”, the first significant text dedicated to the surgical treatment of rectal cancer in over a decade. Dr. Marks is the Program Director of Lankenau Medical Center’s National Accreditation Program for Rectal Cancer (NAPRC).
He is the only colorectal surgeon in the United States currently utilizing the DaVinci Single Port (SP) robot for surgeries and has the most expansive experience with this technology in the world performing well over 100 surgeries.
