Robot-assisted laparoscopic antegrade inguinal lymphadenectomy for penile cancer patients: clinical report of 10 cases

Abstract

Objective To investigate the efficacy and safety of robot-assisted laparoscopic antegrade inguinal lymph node dissection for patients with penile cancer. Methods A retrospective study was performed on clinical data from 10 patients with penile cancer admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University from March 2019 to January 2020. All of them were diagnosed with penis squamous cell carcinoma by pathological diagnosis. Robot-assisted laparoscopic antegrade inguinal lymphadenectomy was performed for all patients under general anesthesia. Results The surgery was successfully accomplished at totally 20 sides without intraoperative conversion to open surgery. The operation time was 87.90±11.58 (80~119) min, intraoperative blood loss was 12.50±8.90 (5~25) mL, and number of removed lymph nodes was 22.90±8.90 (10~35). The positive lymph nodes were 6 in 1 case at T2 stage, 3 in 1 case at T2 stage, 3 in 1 case at T1 stage and 2 in 1 case at T1 stage. The postoperative hospital stay was 2.80±1.23 (2~5) d, and the indwelling time of drainage tube was 17.10±3.63 (7~27) d. None of the patients experienced skin necrosis, bleeding, lymphatic fistula, infection and other complications. During the follow-up time of 16.40±6.79 (14~24) months, recurrence and metastasis were found in only 1 case, and not in the other 9 cases. Conclusion Robot-assisted laparoscopic antegrade bilateral inguinal lymphadenectomy is a safe and effective dissection for penile cancer, which can reduce complications and promote rapid recovery after surgery.

Keywords

• robot-assisted
• inguinal lymph node dissection
• penile cancer