The role of robotic aortic lymphadenectomy in gynecological cancer: surgical and oncological outcome in a single institution experience

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the surgical outcomes observed in robotic transperitoneal aortic lymphadenectomy (AL) in gynecological cancer patients. METHODS: Retrospective data were collected and analyzed on 71 patients undergoing robotic surgical procedures for gynecological cancers, including transperitoneal AL, between December 2014 and February 2018 at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. RESULTS: Median age of the sample population was 50 years (range, 26-76 years). The median operative time was 210 minutes (range, 75-480 minutes), the median estimated blood loss was 50 ml (range, 20-300 ml). The number of para-aortic nodes removed was 12 (range, 7-43). In the whole series, 13 patients (18.3%) had at least one metastatic node. Overall, 10 patients (14.1%) experienced any grade early postoperative complications. Three patients experienced more than one complication. Three intraoperative complications occurred with two cases of vascular injury. Conversion to laparotomy was necessary for one patient (1.4%). CONCLUSIONS: The present study shows the safety and adequacy of robotic transperitoneal AL as surgical staging step for gynecological cancers in terms of perioperative and postoperative outcomes.