Is previous experience in laparoscopic necessary to perform robotic radical prostatectomy? A comparative study with robotic and the classic open procedure in patients with prostate cancer

PURPOSE: To assess comparative results of robot-assisted radical laparoscopic prostatectomy (RARP) performed by surgeons without any experience in laparoscopic prostatectomy and the open procedure performed by surgeons with large experience. METHODS: We analyzed 84 patients (50 subjected to robotic surgery) from June 2012 to September 2013. Data were prospectively collected in a customized database. Two surgeons carried out all the RARP cases. These two surgeons and six more performed the open cases. The perioperative outcomes between the two groups were analyzed with a minimum followup of 12 months. RESULTS: The corporal mass index (BMI) was higher in the open group (p=0.001). There was more operatve time, less hospitalization and blood loss, better trifecta and pentafecta and earlier continence (p=0.045) in the robotic group (p=0.001). There was no difference in positive surgical margins but with greater extraprostatic extension in the open group (p=0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Robot-assisted radical prostatectomy is a safe procedure even in the hands of surgeons with no previous experience. Besides this, better operative outcomes can be reached with this modern approach. .

Penile primary melanoma: analysis of 6 patients treated at Brazilian national cancer institute in the last eight years

Purpose To describe our experience in treating penile melanoma in 06 patients followed at our institution. Materials and Methods Between 2004 and 2012 six consecutive patients with penile melanoma were treated at our Institution. Stage of the disease was classified according to the 2002 AJCC pathologic system. Melanoma in situ (TIS) was diagnosed in one patient. One patient was staged as T1b, two patients as T2b and two patients as T4b. The clinical and pathological findings were evaluated. Immunohistochemical tests were performed for Melan-A, HNB-45, S-100 and C-KIT. All histological specimens were examined by the same pathologist (ABSS). The patients with Cis, stages T1b and one patient T2b underwent only local excision. One patient T2b underwent local excision and sentinel lymph node dissection. Two patients with melanoma stage T4b underwent partial penile amputation. One of these last patients had palpable inguinal lymph nodes at diagnosis and underwent bilateral inguinal lymphadenectomy and received systemic chemotherapy (dacarbazine, 30 cycles). Results Mean follow-up was 36.3 months. One patient, with stage T2b, died after 12 months due to disease recurrence with bilateral inguinal involvement. The patient who underwent chemotherapy progressed with lung metastases and died after 14 months of follow up. The disease-free survival at five years was 33.3%. Conclusion: Penile melanoma is a disease with poor prognosis in most cases. Local excision or partial penile amputation may have effective control for stages T1 and T2 lesions. Patients who have clinically proven metastases died despite surgical and adjuvant chemotherapy. .