Surgical and oncological outcome after laparoscopic versus open nephroureterectomy for non-metastatic, upper-tract urothelial carcinoma. A single-centre experience

Minimally Invasive Radical Nephroureterectomy: 5-Year Update of Techniques and Outcomes

The gold standard treatment for non-metastatic upper tract urothelial cancer (UTUC) is represented by radical nephroureterectomy (RNU). The choice of surgical technique in performing UTUC surgery continues to depend on several factors, including the location and extent of the tumor, the patient's overall health, and very importantly, the surgeon's skill, experience, and preference. Although open and laparoscopic approaches are well-established treatments, evidence regarding robot-assisted radical nephroureterectomy (RANU) is growing. Aim of our study was to perform a critical review on the evidence of the last 5 years regarding surgical techniques and outcomes of minimally invasive RNU, mostly focusing on RANU. Reported oncological and function outcomes suggest that minimally invasive RNU is safe and effective, showing similar survival rates compared to the open approach.

Oncologic outcomes following radical nephroureterectomy for upper tract urothelial carcinoma: a literature review

Background and Objective

Radical nephroureterectomy (RNU) represents the gold standard treatment for non-metastatic upper tract urothelial cancer. We sought to provide a comprehensive review of reported oncologic outcomes of the RNU procedure and of factors that might impact these outcomes.

Methods

A non-systematic review of the literature was conducted by performing an electronic literature search using PubMed with "radical nephroureterectomy" and "oncologic outcomes" as free text search terms. Both original articles and systematic reviews were considered. Search was limited to articles in English that were published in the last 20 years.

Key Content and Findings

Open and laparoscopic RNU offer comparable oncologic outcomes. In more recent years, the discussion has de facto shifted towards the "oncological safety" of robotic RNU, which also seems to offer comparable oncologic outcomes. Several studies have looked at the impact of different treatment-, patient- and tumor-related factors. Among treatment-related factors, attention has been given to diagnostic ureteroscopy and the risk of intravesical recurrence. Surgical wait time and perioperative blood transfusion have also been studied. Perioperative chemotherapy, specifically adjuvant therapy, was shown to improve survival. Among patient-related factors, baseline chronic kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, body mass index, and systemic inflammation have gained recent attention. Some tumor related factors, such as stage, grade, location, and multifocality may negatively impact survival outcomes. Lymphovascular invasion and histologic variants are clinically significant pathological findings.

Conclusions

RNU is a procedure with measured long-term oncologic outcomes. Minimally invasive techniques have gained an established role as they seem to offer comparable oncologic "safety", although special attention is needed in relation to the method of bladder cuff excision. Robotic RNU is gaining popularity, and while evidence remains limited, the current literature supports the oncologic safety of this procedure. Several factors, which can be categorized as treatment-related, patient-related, and tumor-related, might impact the oncologic outcomes of UTUC patients undergoing RNU. These factors can provide crucial information to stratify patients based on their relative risk of disease recurrence and mortality which may guide clinical decision-making.

Clinical outcome of laparoscopic versus robot-assisted radical cystectomy for patients with bladder cancer: a retrospective study

Background

With the development of minimally invasive surgery technology, patients with bladder cancer are increasingly receiving laparoscopic radical cystectomy (LRC) or robotic-assisted radical cystectomy (RARC) treatment. The main purpose of this study was to compare the long-term outcomes of bladder cancer patients treated with LRC versus RARC.

Methods

A retrospective study to identify patients with clinical stage Ta/T1/Tis to T3 bladder cancer who underwent RARC or LRC has been performed. The perioperative outcome, recurrence, and overall survival (OS) of the two surgical methods were compared.

Results

218 patients were identified from March 2010 to December 2019 in our department, which including 82 (38%) patients who received LRC and 136 (62%) patients who received RARC. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of lymph node collection, lymph node positive rate, resection margin positive rate, and postoperative pathological staging. Compared with the LRC group, patients in the RARC group had a median estimated blood loss (180 vs. 250 ml; P = 0.02) and reduced complications at 90 days postoperatively (30.8% vs. 46.3%; P = 0.01). Recurrence, all-cause death, and cancer-specific death occurred in 77 (35%), 55 (25%), and 39 (18%) patients, respectively. The 5-year OS rate was 54.63% and 54.65% in the RARC and LRC group (P > 0.05). The 5-year cancer-specific survival (CSS) rate was 73.32% and 61.55% in RARC and LRC group (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference in OS [hazard ratio (HR) 1.083, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.626–1.874; P = 0.78], and CSS (HR 0.789, 95%CI 0.411–1.515; P = 0.61) between two groups.

Conclusions

Both RARC and LRC were safe and effective with a similar long-term clinical outcomes. Moreover, RARC had significantly lower median estimated blood loss and reduced postoperative complications.

Laparoscopic compared with open nephroureterectomy in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma: A systemic review and a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the effects of open nephroureterectomy compared with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy on postoperative results in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma subjects.

METHODS

A systematic literature search up to January 2021 was done and 36 studies included 23 013 subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma at the start of the study; 8178 of them were laparoscopic nephroureterectomy, and 14 835 of them were open nephroureterectomy. They were reporting relationships between the efficacy and safety of open nephroureterectomy compared with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in the treatment of upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma. We calculated the odds ratio (OR) or the mean difference (MD) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to assess the efficacy and safety of open nephroureterectomy compared with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in the treatment of upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma using the dichotomous or continuous method with a random or fixed-effect model.

RESULTS

Laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma was significantly related to longer operation time (MD, 43.90; 95% CI, 20.91-66.90, P < .001), shorter hospital stay (MD, -1.71; 95% CI, -2.42 to -1.00, P < .001), lower blood loss (MD, -133.82; 95% CI, -220.92 to -46.73, P = .003), lower transfusion need (OR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.47-0.67, P < .001) and lower overall complication (OR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.70-0.90, P < .001) compared with open nephroureterectomy. However, no significant difference was found between laparoscopic nephroureterectomy and open nephroureterectomy in subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma in 2-5-years recurrence-free survival (OR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.69-1.18, P = .46), 2-5-years cancer-specific survival (OR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.69-1.28, P = .68) and 2-5-years overall survival (OR, 1.31; 95% CI, 0.91-1.87, P = .15).

CONCLUSIONS

Laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma may have a longer operation time, shorter hospital stay, lower blood loss, transfusion need and overall complication compared with open nephroureterectomy. Further studies are required to validate these findings.

Open Nephroureterectomy Compared to Laparoscopic in Upper Urinary Tract Urothelial Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis

Background: In this meta-analysis, we will focus on evaluating the effects of open nephroureterectomy compared with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy on postoperative results in upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma subjects.

Methods: A systematic literature search up to January 2021 was performed, and 36 studies included 23,013 subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma at the start of the study; of them, 8,178 were laparoscopic nephroureterectomy, and 14,835 of them were open nephroureterectomy. They were reporting relationships between the efficacy and safety of open nephroureterectomy compared with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in the treatment of upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma. We calculated the odds ratio (OR) or the mean difference (MD) with 95% CIs to evaluate the efficacy and safety of open nephroureterectomy compared with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in the treatment of upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma using the dichotomous or continuous method with a random or fixed-effect model.

Results: Laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma was significantly related to longer operation time (MD, 43.90; 95% CI, 20.91–66.90, p < 0.001), shorter hospital stay (MD, −1.71; 95% CI, −2.42 to −1.00, p < 0.001), lower blood loss (MD, −133.82; 95% CI, −220.92 to −46.73, p = 0.003), lower transfusion need (OR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.47–0.67, p < 0.001), and lower overall complication (OR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.70–0.90, p < 0.001) compared with open nephroureterectomy.

However, no significant difference was found between laparoscopic nephroureterectomy and open nephroureterectomy in subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma in 2–5 years recurrence-free survival (OR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.69–1.18, p = 0.46), 2–5 years cancer-specific survival (OR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.69–1.28, p = 0.68), and 2–5 years overall survival (OR, 1.31; 95% CI, 0.91–1.87, p = 0.15).

Conclusion: Laparoscopic nephroureterectomy in subjects with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma may have a longer operation time, shorter hospital stay, and lower blood loss, transfusion need, and overall complication compared to open nephroureterectomy. Further studies are required to validate these findings.

Comment on: Surgical and oncological outcome after laparoscopic versus open nephroureterectomy for non-metastatic, upper-tract urothelial carcinoma. A single-centre experience

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