Minimally Invasive Surgery in Pediatric Surgical Oncology

Development of an enhanced recovery after surgery program for pediatric solid tumors

Introduction

Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) is an evidence-based, multi-modal approach to decrease surgical stress, expedite recovery, and improve postoperative outcomes. ERAS is increasingly being utilized in pediatric surgery. Its applicability to pediatric patients undergoing abdominal tumor resections remains unknown.

Methods and Analysis

A group of key stakeholders adopted ERAS principles and developed a protocol suitable for the variable complexity of pediatric abdominal solid tumor resections. A multi-center, prospective, propensity-matched case control study was then developed to evaluate the feasibility of the protocol. A pilot-phase was utilized prior to enrollment of all patients older than one month of age undergoing any abdominal, retroperitoneal, or pelvic tumor resections. The primary outcome was 90-day complications per patient. Additional secondary outcomes included: ERAS protocol adherence, length of stay, time to administration of adjuvant chemotherapy, readmissions, reoperations, emergency room visits, pain scores, opioid usage, and differences in Quality of Recovery 9 scores.

Ethics and Dissemination

Institutional review board approval was obtained at all participating centers. Informed consent was obtained from each participating patient. The results of this study will be presented at pertinent society meetings and published in peer-reviewed journals. We expect the results will inform peri-operative care for pediatric surgical oncology patients and provide guidance on initiation of ERAS programs. We anticipate this study will take four years to meet accrual targets and complete follow-up.

Trial Registration Number

NCT04344899.

[Surgery for abdominal neuroblastoma in children]

This review is devoted to surgical approach for neurogenic tumors in children. The authors discuss epidemiological data, history of surgical approaches, preoperative imaging and risk factors. A special attention is paid to the influence of surgical interventions for various neuroblastomas on overall and event-free survival in pediatric population, as well as the most common surgical complications and modern approaches to their treatment.

Robotic-assisted laparoscopy in pediatric surgical oncology: a narrative review

Background and Objective

Robotic surgical oncology in children calls for experienced surgeons in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and a solid oncological background. The aim of this review was to analyze the current state of robotic-assisted laparoscopy in pediatric tumor resection, assess the necessary framework of minimally invasive surgical oncology and describe future developments of the robotic technology.

Methods

A literature search of the MEDLINE/PubMed database was conducted, using the terms "robotic surgery", "pediatric" or "children" and "oncology" or "tumor". All relevant English-language studies published between 2008 and 2022 were reviewed.

Key Content and Findings

Although concerns have been raised regarding the use of MIS in surgical oncology, current literature reports similar oncological outcome if surgeons comply with the oncologic principles. The benefits of MIS have been established for robotic surgery in adult studies, including a shorter time to adjuvant chemotherapy. Surgical feasibility should be assessed based on tumor characteristics, preoperative imaging focusing on vascular involvement and surgeon's experience until clear guidelines are issued. The difficulties in establishing eligibility criteria for robotic resection of pediatric tumors lie in the great variability of indications, heterogeneity in tumor histology with their own surgical specificities, and wide range of age and weight, as shown by the literature review we performed. Between 2008 and 2022, 31 studies reported 171 cases with three studies including at least ten patients. The most reported procedure was adrenalectomy (41 cases). Current research in pediatric surgical oncology focuses on intraoperative locoregional treatment, improved vision with fluorescence and dyed-loaded specific probes and the many possibilities of enhancement software using the robotic console.

Conclusions

The robotic technology allows the surgeon to push the boundaries of conventional laparoscopy. Specific surgical guidelines are necessary.

Laparoscopic Excision of Large Wilms Tumor in Children: A Single-Center Experience from a Resource-Challenged Nation

Background: In this study, we aim to review the outcomes of children with Wilms tumor (WT) operated through the minimally invasive surgery (MIS) approach at our center. We also intend to highlight essential surgical steps during laparoscopic excision of large WTs. Methods: This retrospective study included children with unilateral WT who had undergone resection for a period of 4 years, w.e.f. July 2013 to July 2017. Simple maneuvers such as tilting the table in different positions and use of blunt metallic cannula to lift the tumor to access the hilar vessels were used to dissect large WT. An extended lumbotomy incision was used for retrieval of tumor and lymph-node sampling. Results: Eleven patients (male:female = 7:4) of WT, all having stage III disease, had undergone laparoscopic tumor resection at our center during the study period. The median age at presentation was 36 months (range = 17 months-5 years) and the median preoperative tumor volume was 1140 (range = 936-1560) cm³. The average length of the lumbotomy incision was 6.3 (range = 5-8.2) cm. The median hospital stay was 6 (range = 5-10) days. Two children developed complications (port-site recurrence and grade III surgical site infection in one each) during the postoperative period. All cases are long-term survivors after a median follow-up of 86 (range = 56-104) months. Conclusion: This study highlights the feasibility and safety of the removal of large WT through the MIS approach. Problems due to large-sized tumors in children can be overcome by simple maneuvers. Also, adequate lymph node sampling is possible with a suitably placed extended lumbotomy incision for tumor removal.

Minimally invasive surgery for neuroblastic tumours: A SIOPEN multicentre study: Proposal for guidelines

INTRODUCTION

Surgery plays a key role in the management of Neuroblastic tumours (NB), where the standard approach is open surgery, while minimally invasive surgery (MIS) may be considered an option in selected cases. The indication(s) and morbidity of MIS remain undetermined due to small number of reported studies. The aim of this study was to critically address the contemporary indications, morbidity and overall survival (OS) and propose guidelines exploring the utility of MIS for NB.

MATERIALS & METHODS

A SIOPEN study where data of patients with NB who underwent MIS between 2005 and 2018, including demographics, tumour features, imaging, complications, follow up and survival, were extracted and then analysed.

RESULTS

A total of 222 patients from 16 centres were identified. The majority were adrenal gland origin (54%) compared to abdominal non-adrenal and pelvic (16%) and thoracic (30%). Complete and near complete macroscopic resection (>95%) was achieved in 95%, with 10% of cases having conversion to open surgery. Complications were reported in 10% within 30 days of surgery. The presence of IDRF (30%) and/or tumour volume >75 ml were risk factors for conversion and complications in multivariate analysis. Overall mortality was 8.5%.

CONCLUSIONS

MIS for NB showed that it is a secure approach allowing more than 95% resection. The presence of IDRFs was not an absolute contraindication for MIS. Conversion to open surgery and overall complication rates were low, however they become significant if tumour volume >75 mL. Based on these data, we propose new MIS guidelines for neuroblastic tumours.

Laparoscopic approach for abdominal neuroblastoma in Japan: results from nationwide multicenter survey

BACKGROUND

Some neuroblastoma (NB) cases are suitable for minimally invasive surgery (MIS), but indication and technical issue are unclear. We assessed the current status of MIS for abdominal NB after mass screening period in Japan.

METHODS

Preliminary questionnaires requesting the numbers of NB cases that underwent MIS from 2004 to 2016 were sent to 159 Japanese institutes of pediatric surgery. The secondary questionnaires were then sent to the institutions that reported MIS cases of NB in order to collect detailed data.

RESULTS

One hundred and thirty-four (84.2%) institutions responded to the preliminary questionnaires, and 83 (52.2%) reported managing operative cases. The total number of operative cases was 1496. MIS was performed for 175 (11.6%) cases, of which the completed forms of 140 patients were returned, including 100 abdominal NB cases. The male/female ratio was 51/49. Forty-seven cases underwent a laparoscopic biopsy, and 2 (4.3%) cases were converted to laparotomy due to bleeding. Sixty-five cases underwent MIS for radical resection, and 7 (10.8%) were converted to laparotomy. The reasons for open conversion were bleeding and severe adhesion. Regarding open conversion, there were no significant relationships between conversion and neo-adjuvant chemotherapy, biopsies, stage, size, or MYCN amplification. We found no relationship between resectability and vascular encasement in this study. There was relationship between the resected tumor size and the patients' height, which was expressed using the following formula: [Formula: see text] (x, patients height, y, tumor size; p = 0.004219, SE: 1.55566). Postoperative complications after radical resection were recognized in 7 (10.8%) cases.

CONCLUSIONS

MIS was performed in limited cases of abdominal NB. A laparoscopic biopsy with careful attention to bleeding is feasible. The resected tumor size was shown to correlate with the patients' height. Tumor size within 6 cm of maximum diameter can be resected safely.

The Role of Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery in Pediatric Oncology: Single-Center Experience and Review of the Literature

Aim: Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) has been widely used in the last decades. Nevertheless, the pros and cons of thoracoscopy vs. open surgery in pediatric oncology are still under debate. In literature, VATS has been applied for both diagnostic and ablative surgery to treat neurogenic tumors, thymic neoplasms, lung tumors and metastases, germ cell tumors, lymphoproliferative diseases, and other rare tumors. Recent reviews described excellent outcomes in pediatric oncology as well as in the treatment of adult lung cancer, with a significantly higher rate of mortality and complication in thoracotomy compared to VATS. We reviewed our experience on thoracoscopy in pediatric malignancy and compared it to the literature. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective cohort-study of pediatric oncological patients who underwent VATS at our institution from 2007 to 2020, and a review of the recent literature on the topic. Results: A total of 43 procedures were performed on 38 oncological patients (18 males, 20 females). Median age was years 7.72 (0.35-18.6). Diagnosis: 10 neurogenic tumors, nine hematological diseases, five metastases, four lypoblastomas, three thymic pathologies, three germ cell tumors, two pleuropneumoblastomas, two myofibroblastic tumors, one myoepithelial carcinoma, one liposarcoma, and three suspected oncological mass. In three cases, a 3D model was elaborated to better plan the surgical approach. Diagnostic biopsies were 22 (51.1%), and ablative surgeries, 21 (48.9%). One neurogenic tumor was resected with the Da Vinci Robot. Median operative time was 120 min (30-420). A drain was left in place in 20 (46.5%) for a median of 4 days. Median length of hospitalization was 5 days (1-18). One case (2.3%) was converted (intraoperative bleeding). There were three post-operative complications (7.0%): one pneumonia, one pleural effusion, and one diaphragmatic paralysis (need for plication). Results were compared to recent literature, and morbidity and conversion rate were comparable to reviewed publications. Conclusion: VATS represents a valuable tool for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in pediatric oncology. Nonetheless, it is a challenging technique that should be performed by expert surgeons on oncological and mini-invasive surgery. Three-dimensional reconstruction can optimize the pre-operative planning and guarantee a safer and more targeted treatment. Finally, the advent of robotics-assisted surgery represents a new challenge that may further implement the advantages of VATS.

Individualized robotic organ-sparing surgery in a paediatric case of renal perivascular epithelioid cell tumour

BACKGROUND

Perivascular epithelioid cell tumours (PEComas) represent a rare group of mesenchymal tumours with an unpredictable outcome. They are usually observed in middle-aged women whilst they are very rare in children, with limited cases described. Due to the rare anatomical location in kidneys, a correct diagnosis and treatment is really challenging.

METHODS

We observed and treated a case of kidney's PEComa in a 14-year-old boy.

RESULTS

An individualized approach based on anatomical (3D CT-reconstructions) and histopathological (US-guided preliminary biopsy) features lead us to perform a successful robotic-sparing surgery enabling the preservation of two-thirds of the kidney involved.

CONCLUSIONS

A meticulous preoperative planning in selected patients can lead to a minimally invasive approach even in some paediatric kidney's neoplasms.

Minimally invasive surgery to treat embryonal tumors of childhood

Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) to resect primary and metastatic pediatric embryonal tumors offers the potential for reduced postoperative morbidity with smaller wounds, less pain, fewer surgical site infections, decreased blood loss, shorter hospital stays, and less disruption to treatment regimens. However, significant controversy surrounds the question of whether a high-fidelity oncologic resection of childhood embryonal tumors with gross total resection, negative margins, and appropriate lymph node sampling can be achieved through MIS. This review outlines the diverse applications of MIS to treat definitively pediatric embryonal malignancies, including this approach to metastatic deposits. It outlines specific patient populations and presentations that may be particularly amenable to the minimally invasive approach. This work further summarizes the current evidence supporting the efficacy of MIS to accomplish a definitive, oncologic resection without compromising relapse-free or overall survival. Finally, the review offers technical considerations to consider in order to achieve a safe and complete resection.

Pediatric surgical oncology: A brief overview of where we have been and the challenges we face

The evolution of the treatment of pediatric solid tumors has been one of progressive improvements in survival. With the advent of pediatric cooperative groups, a systematic approach has brought integrated multidisciplinary care to childhood cancer patients. Improved medical regimens and advances in the basic understanding and characterization of molecular biology of individual tumors continues to bring new treatment options. As long term survival has improved, a greater appreciation of the late effects of treatment has led to increase awareness and intervention for things like infertility. The surgeon remains a critical member of the treatment team. Surgical treatment techniques continue to evolve and the role of surgery in each tumor type is continually redefined. It is incumbent on the treating surgeon to know the treatment guidelines for each case in order to provide the patient with the best opportunity for a successful outcome.