Complications and adverse events in lymphadenectomy of the inguinal area: worldwide expert consensus.

BACKGROUND: Inguinal lymph node dissection plays an important role in the management of melanoma, penile and vulval cancer. Inguinal lymph node dissection is associated with various intraoperative and postoperative complications with significant heterogeneity in classification and reporting. This lack of standardization challenges efforts to study and report inguinal lymph node dissection outcomes. The aim of this study was to devise a system to standardize the classification and reporting of inguinal lymph node dissection perioperative complications by creating a worldwide collaborative, the complications and adverse events in lymphadenectomy of the inguinal area (CALI) group. METHODS: A modified 3-round Delphi consensus approach surveyed a worldwide group of experts in inguinal lymph node dissection for melanoma, penile and vulval cancer. The group of experts included general surgeons, urologists and oncologists (gynaecological and surgical). The survey assessed expert agreement on inguinal lymph node dissection perioperative complications. Panel interrater agreement and consistency were assessed as the overall percentage agreement and Cronbach's α. RESULTS: Forty-seven experienced consultants were enrolled: 26 (55.3%) urologists, 11 (23.4%) surgical oncologists, 6 (12.8%) general surgeons and 4 (8.5%) gynaecology oncologists. Based on their expertise, 31 (66%), 10 (21.3%) and 22 (46.8%) of the participants treat penile cancer, vulval cancer and melanoma using inguinal lymph node dissection respectively; 89.4% (42 of 47) agreed with the definitions and inclusion as part of the inguinal lymph node dissection intraoperative complication group, while 93.6% (44 of 47) agreed that postoperative complications should be subclassified into five macrocategories. Unanimous agreement (100%, 37 of 37) was achieved with the final standardized classification system for reporting inguinal lymph node dissection complications in melanoma, vulval cancer and penile cancer. CONCLUSION: The complications and adverse events in lymphadenectomy of the inguinal area classification system has been developed as a tool to standardize the assessment and reporting of complications during inguinal lymph node dissection for the treatment of melanoma, vulval and penile cancer.

Long-term oncological and surgical outcomes after Video Endoscopic Inguinal Lymphadenectomy (VEIL) in patients with penile cancer

ABSTRACT Objective: To report outcomes from the largest multicenter series of penile cancer patients undergoing video endoscopic inguinal lymphadenectomy (VEIL). Materials and Methods: Retrospective multicenter analysis. Authors of 21 centers from the Penile Cancer Collaborative Coalition-Latin America (PeC-LA) were included. All centers performed the procedure following the same previously described standardized technique. Inclusion criteria included penile cancer patients with no palpable lymph nodes and intermediate/high-risk disease and those with non-fixed palpable lymph nodes less than 4 cm in diameter. Categorical variables are shown as percentages and frequencies whereas continuous variables as mean and range. Results: From 2006 to 2020, 210 VEIL procedures were performed in 105 patients. Mean age was 58 (45-68) years old. Mean operative time was 90 minutes (60-120). Mean lymph node yield was 10 nodes (6-16). Complication rate was 15.7%, including severe complications in 1.9% of procedures. Lymphatic and skin complications were noted in 8.6 and 4.8% of patients, respectively. Histopathological analysis revealed lymph node involvement in 26.7% of patients with non-palpable nodes. Inguinal recurrence was observed in 2.8% of patients. 10y- overall survival was 74.2% and 10-y cancer specific survival was 84.8%. CSS for pN0, pN1, pN2 and pN3 were 100%, 82.4%, 72.7% and 9.1%, respectively. Conclusion: VEIL seems to offer appropriate long term oncological control with minimal morbidity. In the absence of non-invasive stratification measures such as dynamic sentinel node biopsy, VEIL emerged as the alternative for the management of non-bulky lymph nodes in penile cancer.

Long-term oncological and surgical outcomes after Video Endoscopic Inguinal Lymphadenectomy (VEIL) in patients with penile cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To report outcomes from the largest multicenter series of penile cancer patients undergoing video endoscopic inguinal lymphadenectomy (VEIL). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Retrospective multicenter analysis. Authors of 21 centers from the Penile Cancer Collaborative Coalition-Latin America (PeC-LA) were included. All centers performed the procedure following the same previously described standardized technique. Inclusion criteria included penile cancer patients with no palpable lymph nodes and intermediate/high-risk disease and those with non-fixed palpable lymph nodes less than 4 cm in diameter. Categorical variables are shown as percentages and frequencies whereas continuous variables as mean and range. RESULTS: From 2006 to 2020, 210 VEIL procedures were performed in 105 patients. Mean age was 58 (45-68) years old. Mean operative time was 90 minutes (60-120). Mean lymph node yield was 10 nodes (6-16). Complication rate was 15.7%, including severe complications in 1.9% of procedures. Lymphatic and skin complications were noted in 8.6 and 4.8% of patients, respectively. Histopathological analysis revealed lymph node involvement in 26.7% of patients with non-palpable nodes. Inguinal recurrence was observed in 2.8% of patients. 10y- overall survival was 74.2% and 10-y cancer specific survival was 84.8%. CSS for pN0, pN1, pN2 and pN3 were 100%, 82.4%, 72.7% and 9.1%, respectively. CONCLUSION: VEIL seems to offer appropriate long term oncological control with minimal morbidity. In the absence of non-invasive stratification measures such as dynamic sentinel node biopsy, VEIL emerged as the alternative for the management of non-bulky lymph nodes in penile cancer.

Laparoscopic urinary undiversion due to recurrent neobladder vaginal fistula: from orthotopic neobladder to ileal conduit / Desderivación urinaria laparoscópica por fístula neo-vesico vaginal recurrente: de neovejiga ortotópica a conducto ileal

Objective: Describe our experience in laparoscopic urinary undiversion due to recurrent neobladder vaginal fistula (NBVF). Methods: Retrospective review of patients who underwent laparoscopic urinary undiversion. Complications were characterized according to the Clavien classification. The Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGII) questionnaire was used at one year of follow-up to assess the quality of life (QOL). Results: Three laparoscopic urinary undiversions, from orthotopic neobladder to ileal conduit. Two patients underwent laparoscopic cystectomy due to bladder cancer, and one open pelvic exenteration due to cervical cancer. All patients had received previous pelvic radiotherapy. Complications during the first 2 months were Clavien II (two patients). According to the PGII score, two patients felt "much better" and one felt "very much better." Conclusion: Urinary undiversion is a last resort, complex procedure. Even though, it may be the only chance to improve QOL in patients with recurrent or unrepairable NBVF. A laparoscopic approach with neobladder resection, fistulectomy, and intracorporeal ileal conduit is feasible. Further studies are required to assess the best approach in the management of NBVF.

Objetivo: Describir nuestra experiencia en desderivación urinaria laparoscópica por fístula neo-vesico vaginal recurrente (NBVF). Métodos: Revisión retrospectiva de pacientes a los que se les realizó desderivación urinaria laparoscópica. Las complicaciones se caracterizaron según la clasificación de Clavien. El cuestionario de Impresión Global de Mejora del Paciente (PGII) se utilizó al año de seguimiento para evaluar la calidad de vida (QoL). Resultados: 3 desderivaciones urinarias laparoscópicas, de neovejiga ortotópica a conducto ileal. Dos pacientes se sometieron a cistectomía laparoscópica por cáncer de vejiga y una exenteración pélvica abierta por cáncer de cuello uterino. Todos los pacientes habían recibido radioterapia pélvica previa. Las complicaciones durante los primeros 2 meses fueron Clavien II (2 pacientes). Según la puntuación PGII, dos pacientes se sintieron «Mucho mejor¼ y uno se sintió «Muchísimo mejor.¼ Conclusión: La desderivación urinaria laparoscopica es un procedimiento complejo y de último recurso. Sin embargo, puede ser la única oportunidad para mejorar la calidad de vida en pacientes con NBVF recurrentes o irreparables. El abordaje laparoscópico con resección de neovejiga, fistulectomía y conducto ileal intracorpóreo es factible. Se requieren más estudios para evaluar el mejor enfoque en el manejo de NBVF.