paywalled: Comparison of oncological outcomes for open and laparoscopic radical nephroureterectomy: results from the Canadian Upper Tract Collaboration (Lynch Syndrome patients)

Comparison of oncological outcomes for open and laparoscopic radical nephroureterectomy: results from the Canadian Upper Tract Collaboration  - 2012

What's known on the subject? and What does the study add?

• Open radical nephroureterectomy (ORNU) with excision of the ipsilateral bladder cuff is a standard treatment for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC). However, over the past decade laparoscopic RNU (LRNU) has emerged as a minimally invasive surgical alternative. Data comparing the oncological efficacy of ORNU and LRNU have reported mixed results and the equivalence of these surgical techniques have not yet been established.
• We found that surgical approach was not independently associated with overall or disease-specific survival; however, there was a trend toward an independent association between LRNU and poorer recurrence-free survival (RFS). To our knowledge, this is the first large, multi-institutional analysis to show a trend toward inferior RFS in patients with UTUC treated with LRNU.