Robotic Versus Open Radical Hysterectomy in Women With Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy: A Single-institution Experience of Surgical and Oncologic Outcomes

Paclitaxel Plus Platinum Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Followed by Surgery Versus Primary Surgery in Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer-A Propensity Score Matching Analysis

Objective

To compare the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery (NACTS) and primary surgery (PS) in locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC).

Methods

LACC (stage IB2/IIA2, FIGO 2009) patients who accepted NACTS or PS in the Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences from 2007 to 2017 were enrolled, and a database was established. A 1:1 ratio propensity score matching (PSM) was performed for the NACTS group and PS group according to pretreatment characteristics. After PSM, the clinicopathological features and prognosis between the matched groups were compared.

Results

Of 802 cases in the database, 639 met the inclusion criteria, with 428 received paclitaxel plus platinum NACTS, and 211 received PS. After PSM, the two groups had comparable pretreatment characteristics, with 190 cases in each group. In the NACTS group, the operation parameters were similar to the PS group except for the longer operation time (median 255 min vs. 239 min, P = 0.007); pathological intermediate-risk factors including tumor diameter (P < 0.001) and LVSI(+) (P < 0.001) were significantly decreased; fewer patients were with ≥2 intermediate-risk factors (10.5 vs. 53.2%, P < 0.001) so that the rate of adjuvant radiotherapy was reduced (54.2 vs. 70.0%, P = 0.002). DFS and OS were similar between the NACTS group and PS group (P > 0.05). However, for patients with tumor diameter ≥5 cm or SCC ≥5 ng/ml, DFS of the NACTS group was significantly prolonged (P = 0.016, P = 0.007).

Conclusion

Paclitaxel plus platinum neoadjuvant chemotherapy can reduce adjuvant radiotherapy by decreasing pathological risk factors. Patients with tumor diameter ≥5 cm or SCC ≥5 ng/ml may obtain survival benefits.

Minimally Invasive Approaches in Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer Patients Undergoing Radical Surgery After Chemoradiotherapy: A Propensity Score Analysis

Purpose

Chemoradiation (CT/RT) followed by radical surgery (RS) may play a role in locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) patients with suboptimal response to CT/RT or in low-income countries with limited access to radiotherapy. Our aim is to evaluate oncological and surgical outcomes of minimally invasive radical surgery (MI-RS) compared with open radical surgery (O-RS).

Patients and Methods

Data for stage IB2–IVA cervical cancer patients managed by CT/RT and RS were retrospectively analyzed.

Results

Beginning with 686 patients, propensity score matching resulted in 462 cases (231 per group), balanced for FIGO stage, lymph node status, histotype, tumor grade, and clinical response to CT/RT. The 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was 73.7% in the O-RS patients and 73.0% in the MI-RS patients (HR 1.034, 95% CI 0.708–1.512, p = 0.861). The 5-year locoregional recurrence rate was 12.5% (O-RS) versus 15.2% (MI-RS) (HR 1.174, 95% CI 0.656–2.104, p = 0.588). The 5-year disease-specific survival (DSS) was 80.4% in O-RS patients and 85.3% in the MI-RS group (HR 0.731, 95% CI 0.438–1.220, p = 0.228). Estimated blood loss was lower in the MI-RS group (p < 0.001), as was length of hospital stay (p < 0.001). Early postoperative complications occurred in 77 patients (33.3%) in the O-RS group versus 88 patients (38.1%) in the MI-RS group (p = 0.331). Fifty-six (24.2%) patients experienced late postoperative complications in the O-RS group, versus 61 patients (26.4%) in the MI-RS group (p = 0.668).

Conclusion

MI-RS and O-RS are associated with similar rates of recurrence and death in LACC patients managed by surgery after CT/RT. No difference in early or late complications was reported.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1245/s10434-020-09302-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Oncologic Outcomes of Robotic Radical Hysterectomy (RRH) for Patients with Early-Stage Cervical Cancer: Experience at a Referral Cancer Center

PURPOSE

To evaluate oncologic outcomes of early stage cervical cancer patients who underwent robotic radical hysterectomy (RRH) in a referral center, a retrospective analysis was performed.

METHODS

From January 2010 to December 2018, medical records of stage IA2-IIA1 cervical cancer patients, who underwent radical hysterectomy at our institute, were retrospectively reviewed. We focused our analysis on those who underwent RRH.

RESULTS

A total of 198 patients were included in the final analysis. Median follow up was 52 months. At last follow-up, 188 (94.9%) women were disease-free, 9 (4.5%) had died, and 1 (0.5%) was alive with recurrent disease. At 4.5 years, PFS was 93.1% (SE ± 2.1) and OS was 95.1% (SE ± 1.8). Stratified by tumor size, PFS for tumor < 2 cm versus tumor ≥ 2 cm was statistically different (96.8% ± 2.3 and 87.9% ± 4.1 respectively, p = 0.01), as well as OS (100% and 89.8% ± 40 respectively, p = 0.01).Stratified by evidence of tumor at time of robotic surgery, PFS was statistically different in women with no residual tumor after conisation versus those with residual disease (100% ± 2.5 and 90.8% ± 2.8 respectively, p = 0.04). A recurrence occurred in 11 patients (5.6%).

CONCLUSIONS

Based on our results, we could speculate that robotic approach, along with some technical precautions to avoid spillage, might be safe as primary treatment of early-stage cervical cancer, especially for tumor < 2 cm and in case of no evidence of disease at time of radical hysterectomy after previous conisation.

Laparoscopic vs. Abdominal Radical Hysterectomy for Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer

This study is to compare the survival outcomes of laparoscopic radical hysterectomy (LRH) to those of abdominal radical hysterectomy (ARH) for patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC). Patients with the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) 2009 stage IB2 to IIB LACC who underwent radical hysterectomy between 2001 and 2015 were identified. The disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared according to the surgical approach and were adjusted based on clinicopathologic characteristics. A total of 396 patients were included in the study, with 179 (45.2%) and 217 (54.8%) patients in the ARH and LRH groups, respectively. The LRH group showed a significantly lower amount of estimated blood loss, lower blood transfusion rate and shorter length of hospital stay. Overall, there were no significant differences in the 5-year DFS and 5-year OS between the LRH and ARH groups with the Kaplan-Meier method. However, multivariate analyses identified LRH as an independent prognostic factor for a poor DFS (hazard ratio [HR] 2.5; 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 0.19 to 0.87; p = 0.02). The analysis of stage IB2 disease and the squamous subtype (61.9% and 87.9% of all participants, respectively) reached the same conclusion. When stratifying by FIGO stage, the patients with IB2 (n = 348) in the ARH group had a significantly better DFS (HR 0.14, 95% CI 0.05–0.42, p < 0.01) and OS (HR 0.17, 95% CI 0.04–0.67, p = 0.11) than those in the LRH group in the Cox regression model. However, no differences were found in patient with stage IIA1, IIA2, or IIB in Cox regression model. When stratifying by histological types, for the patients with squamous carcinomas (n = 375), in Cox model, ARH had a significantly superior DFS compared with those who underwent LRH (HR 0.45, 95% CI 0.25–0.82, p = 0.01), but the OS was not statistically significant (HR 0.57, 95% CI 0.27–1.20, p = 0.14). However, no differences were found in patient with adenocarcinoma and adenosquamous carcinomas in the Cox model. Therefore, ARH was associated with a higher DFS than LRH in patients with LACC, especially in patients with stage IB2 disease or the squamous subtype.

Radical Hysterectomy After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Locally Bulky-Size Cervical Cancer: A Retrospective Comparative Analysis between the Robotic and Abdominal Approaches

Radical hysterectomy (RH) is the standard treatment for early stage cervical cancer, but the surgical approach for locally bulky-size cervical cancer (LBS-CC) is still unclear. We retrospectively compared the outcomes of women with LBS-CC treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) and subsequent RH between the robotic (R-RH) and abdominal approaches (A-RH). Between 2012 and 2014, 39 women with LBS-CC FIGO (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics) stage IB2-IIB were treated with NACT-R-RH (n = 18) or NACT-A-RH (n = 21). Surgical parameters and prognosis were compared. Patient characteristics were not significantly different between the groups, but the NACT-R-RH group had significantly more patients with FIGO stage IIB disease, received multi-agent-based NACT, and had a lower percentage of deep stromal invasion than the NACT-A-RH group. After NACT-R-RH, surgical parameters were better, but survival outcomes, such as disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS), were significantly worse. On multivariate analysis, FIGO stage IIB contributed to worse DFS (p = 0.003) and worse OS (p = 0.012) in the NACT-A-RH group. Women with LBS-CC treated with NACT-R-RH have better perioperative outcomes but poorer survival outcomes compared with those treated with NACT-A-RH. Thus, patients with FIGO stage IIB LBS-CC disease might not be suitable for surgery after multi-agent-based NACT.

Robotic Radical Hysterectomy After Concomitant Chemoradiation in Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer: A Prospective Phase II Study

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To assess the feasibility of total robotic radical surgery (TRRS) in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) who receive chemoradiation therapy (CT/RT).

DESIGN

A prospective (preplanned) study of a nonrandomized controlled trial (Canadian Task Force classification level 2).

SETTING

Catholic University of the Sacred Hearth, Rome, Italy.

PATIENTS

Between September 2013 and January 2016, a total of 40 patients with LACC (Fédération Internationale de Gynécologie et d'Obstétrique stage IB2-III) were enrolled in the study.

INTERVENTIONS

Robotic radical hysterectomy (RRH) plus pelvic and/or aortic lymphadenectomy was attempted within 6 weeks after CT/RT. The feasibility of TRRS as well as the rate, pattern, and severity of early and late postoperative complications were analyzed.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

After CT/RT, 29 patients (72.5%) underwent type B2 RRH, and 11 (27.5%) underwent type C1 RRH. Pelvic lymphadenectomy was performed in all cases. TRRS was successful in 39 of 40 cases (feasibility rate = 97.5%). In patients successfully completing TRRS, the median operating time was 185 minutes (range, 100-330 minutes), and the median blood loss was 100 mL (range, 50-300 mL). The median time of hospitalization counted from the first postoperative day was 2 days (range, 1-4 days). No intraoperative complications were recorded. During the observation period (median = 18 months; range, 4-28 months), 9 of 40 (22.5%) experienced postoperative complications, for a total number of 12 complications. As of April 2016, recurrence of disease was documented in 5 cases (12.5%).

CONCLUSION

TRRS is feasible in LACC patients administered preoperative CT/RT, providing perioperative outcomes comparable with those registered in early-stage disease, and LACC patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy.