Laparoscopic management of kidney cancer: updated review

Laparoscopy has emerged as the preferred option for the surgical management of kidney cancer. Although many reports have been published regarding the operative outcome of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and upper-tract transitional cell carcinoma (TCCA) treated laparoscopically, few review the oncologic outcome of these pathologies treated with laparoscopic techniques.

We review the literature regarding the laparoscopic approaches, the complications related to laparoscopic surgery, and the long-term oncologic results of laparoscopic radical nephrectomy, partial nephrectomy, and nephroureterectomy.

Laparoscopic radical nephrectomy has become the new standard of care for most patients with suspected RCCs that are not amenable to nephron-sparing procedures. Laparoscopic techniques for managing RCC and TCCA are safe, follow well-established guidelines for surgical dissection, and meet or exceed perioperative convalescence and oncologic outcomes compared to traditional open procedures. The surgical techniques and the long-term outcome data for laparoscopic partial nephrectomy continue to mature.

Laparoscopy is a minimally invasive option available to most patients with kidney cancer. The immediate benefits of laparoscopy are well established and include less estimated blood loss, decreased pain, shorter perioperative convalescence, and improved cosmesis. Long-term oncologic outcomes of patients treated laparoscopically for kidney tumors resemble those of the open surgical approach.