[Significance of residual hyperplastic cells after radical prostatectomy. A literature review]

Radical prostatectomy represents a standard surgical treatment for clinically localized prostate cancer. Classically pathologist and urologist worried about positive surgical margin, but not to the presence of surgery residual hyperplastic cells able to generate prostate specific antigen (PSA) and difficult the follow up of the patients that underwent surgery. We reviewed the literature looking for the incidence, the potential etiology and the influence of these hyperplastic cells in the biochemical evolution of the disease.

The information for this review was compiled by searching the Pubmed database. We used "Mesh", Prostatectomy" and "Prostatic Neoplasms" and "Prostate-Specific Antigen" terms, and we added "biochemical failure" and/or "hyperplasic cells" and/or "benign cells". Furthermore, we select the work in English, Spanish and German, review articles that referenced this work and include the series with more than 50 patients, letters to the editor, editorials and overall reviews.

Benign hyperplasic cells left behind after radical prostatectomy are frequent and probably under-rated. The influence of those cells in the biochemical outcome is a controversial issue. Positive margins for benign cells can come from apex or neck of the bladder, where the prostatic capsule is not well defined, but no from dorso-lateral area, this would imply a technical mistake. We recommend the inspection of the specimen by the surgeon, after prostatectomy in order to detect apex integrity, cranial and dorso-lateral capsule.