Since the initial report of robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) in 2001, the technique has gained rapid acceptance and utilization. When compared with more traditional forms of surgical intervention, there is still much debate with respect to cost, and impact on potency and continence. Less often is the focus on oncologic outcomes. Pelvic lymph node dissection (PLND) at the time of prostatectomy is an important part of the surgical intervention for prostate cancer and is currently underreported during robotic procedures. Herein, we review the current controversies on the value and extent of PLND and the status of emerging data regarding robot-assisted PLND.
IntroductionRadical prostatectomy has undergone an evolution in technique over many decades with older procedures being largely replaced by newer ones due to perceived superiority of oncologic outcomes or diminution of operative morbidity. [1][2][3] In the United States, da Vinci robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) has gained rapid popularity because of the facility with which it allows laparoscopic skills to be transferred to even non-laparoscopically trained surgeons. 4 Thus, the benefits of laparoscopy, enhanced optical magnification, decreased blood loss, and minimal incisions can be obtained without prolonged learning curves. Any time a new technique is introduced, it must be compared with current methods to ascertain at least equivalent outcomes, in addition to assessment of benefits, and limitations. To this end, there have been recent publications from the centers of excellence attempting to compare RALP to radical retropubic and pure laparoscopic techniques. 5,6 However, there has been a paucity of literature addressing pelvic lymph node dissection (PLND) at the time of RALP. This is not the case with all urologic robot-assisted procedures; recent literature on robot-assisted radical cystectomy has specifically focused on feasibility and adequacy of robot-assisted PLND. 7 Thus, the lack of literature on robot-assisted PLND at RALP may reflect that PLND at the time of prostatectomy performed through open technique (or otherwise) is a controversial topic. Important questions remain regarding patient selection, potential benefit and anatomic extent of the dissection, nodal yield, and complication rates. We will review these controversies and the state of the literature regarding RALP PLND in this context.
Ongoing controversies in PLNDIn the United States, prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed noncutaneous cancer and the second-leading cause of cancer death among men. In 2008, 186 320 men were diagnosed with, and 28 660 men died of, prostate cancer in the United States. 8 The advent of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening has led to a profound stage migration such that men diagnosed in the PSA era are younger and have lower clinical and pathologic stage and lower mortality rates, and when treated they have improved margin-free status and biochemical progression-free survival and decreased extracapsular extension a...