Oncologic and functional outcomes following robot assisted radical prostatectomy: 15-Year experience in a Latin American referral center.

BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men with more than 52,000 cases diagnosed every year on average. With the introduction of robotic surgery, robotic assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) has become a popular treatment option in recent years. Achieving oncological control, urinary continence and satisfactory erectile sexual function after RP is the main goal also known as "trifecta". All these outcomes are highly influenced by surgical experience and caseload. The main objective of this study is to analyze oncological and functional outcomes in RARP after 15 years of experience. METHODS: From 2008 until December 2023, 1790 RARP for localized prostate cancer were performed. A retrospective analysis was conducted based on prospectively collected data correlated with electronic medical records. RESULTS: Subgroup analyses were conducted in order to evaluate oncological and functional outcomes (n: 1400). Red blood cell transfusion and conversion to open surgery rate was 1.9 % and 0.1 %, respectively. Mean surgical time was 194 min. Mean follow-up time was 69.5 months, 23.8 % patients experienced biochemical recurrence and 1 % died, primarily due to disease progression. Estimated 10-year recurrence-free survival was 68.7 % (95 % CI 67.2-72.2) while estimated 10-year overall survival was 97.9 % (95 % CI 96.3-99.4). Overall urinary continence rate at 2 years was 86.9 % while satisfactory erectile function rate at 18 months was 56.8 %. CONCLUSIONS: Robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy has become a standard surgical technique in our urological practice for the management of clinically localized and locally advanced prostate tumors in selected cases. After 15 years since the inception of our robotic surgery program, we can conclude that our results are comparable to those published in the international literature, enabling patients to maintain satisfactory sexual function with a high continence rate within the first year of surgery.

Renal Cell Carcinoma with Venous Extension: Safety of Laparoscopic Surgery for Thrombus Levels I-IIIa.

Background: Novel studies are helping to consider minimally invasive surgery for treating patients with renal cell carcinoma and venous tumor thrombus. Evidence regarding its feasibility and safety is still sparse and does not include a subclassification for level III thrombi. We aim to compare the safety of laparoscopic vs open surgery in patients with levels I-IIIa thrombus. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional comparative study using single-institutional data on adult patients treated surgically between June 2008 and June 2022. Participants were categorized into open and laparoscopic surgery groups. Primary outcome was difference in the incidence of 30-day major postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo III-V) between groups. Secondary outcomes were differences in operative time, length of hospital stay, intraoperative blood transfusions, delta hemoglobin level, 30-day minor complications (Clavien-Dindo I-II), estimated overall survival, and progression-free survival between groups. A logistic regression model was performed including adjustment for confounding variables. Results: Overall, 15 patients in the laparoscopic group and 25 patients in the open group were included. Major complications occurred in 24.0% of patients within the open group and 6.7% of patients were treated laparoscopically (p = 0.120). Minor complications arose in 32.0% of patients treated with open surgery and in 13.3% of patients treated in the laparoscopic group (p = 0.162). Although not significant, there was a higher perioperative death rate within open surgery cases. The laparoscopic approach presented a crude odds ratio for major complications of 0.22 (95% confidence interval 0.02-2.1, p = 0.191) compared with open surgery. No differences were found between groups regarding oncologic outcomes. Conclusion: Laparoscopic approach for patients with venous thrombus levels I-IIIa seems to be as safe as open surgery.

Comparing open and robotic salvage radical prostatectomy after radiotherapy: predictors and outcomes.

INTRODUCTION: In the present study, we aim to provide more evidence about benefits of salvage radical prostatectomy (SRP). Our main objective is to assess prostatic-specific antigen control and postoperative urinary incontinence in open and robotic approaches as primary outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After the Institutional Review Board approval (IRB00010193), we retrospectively analyzed 76 consecutive patients who underwent open or robot-assisted SRP for locally relapsed prostate cancer between 2004 and 2019 at the Urology Department of Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Data were collected from our electronic medical record and prospective database.Postoperative variables, such as urinary incontinence, erectile function preservation, and vesicourethral anastomosis stricture development, were analyzed. RESULTS: Before SRP, 59 patients (76.6%) were treated with 3D external beam radiotherapy, 11 (14.3%) with brachytherapy, and 6 (7.8%) with intensity-modulated radiotherapy. Fifty patients underwent open SRP, and 26, robot-assisted SRP. Comparing surgical approaches, the global incontinence rate was 34.2% versus 9.1% in open versus robot-assisted approach, respectively (p: 0.01).Vesicourethral anastomosis stricture occurred in six patients (8.7%), all in the open approach group (p: 0.07). Five patients of 69 (7.2%) preserved erectile function with/without use of phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors. Two patients in the open approach group needed blood transfusion. Estimated 2-year biochemical recurrence-free survival rate in the open approach group and robot-assisted group was 67% (95% confidence interval: 53.7-80.3) and 60.9% (95% confidence interval: 40.5-81.3), respectively, with no statistical difference (log-rank test p: 0.873). CONCLUSIONS: Robot-assisted SRP is a reliable procedure to treat local recurrences after external beam radiotherapy or brachytherapy, reducing the risk of anastomotic strictures and blood loss and improving continence outcomes.

Current Trends in Management of Renal Cell Carcinoma with Venous Thrombus Extension.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review the evidence regarding the current trends in surgical management of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with inferior vena cava (IVC) thrombosis. Recent published series have shown the role of minimally invasive surgery in IVC thrombectomy. This review article evaluates the present RCC with venous extent literature to assess the role of open and minimally invasive surgery in this scenario. RECENT FINDINGS: Robotic urological surgery has shown to have known benefits in radical prostatectomy, partial nephrectomy, and pyeloplasty. Recent published series showed feasibility of robotic IVC thrombectomy even for level IV cases. With growing number of robot-assisted and laparoscopic surgeries worldwide, there is a current tendency to treat this complex and challenging pathology with a minimally invasive approach, without compromising oncological outcomes.

Renal fossa recurrence after radical nephrectomy: Current management, and oncological outcomes.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Kidney cancers represent 2% of cancers worldwide; the most common type is renal clear cell carcinoma (RCC). Surgical treatment remains the only effective therapy for localized renal cell carcinoma. Approximately 20% to 38% of patients undergoing radical nephrectomy (RN) for localized RCC will have subsequent disease progression, with 0.8% to 3.6% of local recurrences within the ipsilateral retroperitoneum (RFR). The main objective of this study is to evaluate prognostic features, oncological outcomes, and current management for renal fossa recurrence in patients with history of RN for RCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 733 patients who underwent open or laparoscopic RN for unilateral T1-T4 N0 M0 RCC between 2010 and 2016 at the Urology Department of Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires. RESULTS: During the mentioned period, of a total of 733 RNs (open/laparoscopic), 561 patients with RCC were included in the study. After a median follow-up time of 24 months (12-36) (interquartile range), 21 (3.74%) patients out of 561, developed renal fossa recurrence. Of these, 13 (2.31%) patients were diagnosed with isolated local renal fossa recurrence and different treatment approaches were adopted; 11 patients underwent open surgical resection, 1 patient laparoscopic surgical resection, and 1 case was treated with cryoablation. Regarding cancer-specific survival, estimated 4-year cancer-specific survival in patients without RFR, with isolated RFR (iRFR) and not isolated RFR (niRFR) was 82.7% (CI 95% 70.2-95.2), 69.2% (IC 44.2-94.2) and 0%, respectively (log rank test P < 0.0001 being niRFR group different to others. Non isolated RFR was a death risk factor with a HR of 11.4 (4.8-27.2) compared with iRFR or no recurrence. Overall, 51% (IC 26.6-71.2) of patients with any RFR died at 4 years follow-up. CONCLUSION: Although RFR is a rare condition, in the absence of distant metastatic disease, aggressive surgical resection should be our aim. High pathological tumoral stage at original nephrectomy and high tumoral grade are independent risk factors for RFR. This group of patients needs closer follow-up to detect earlier recurrences and decide a treatment strategy.