Laparoscopy and gynecologic oncology

Laparoscopy was used for a second-look assessment in ovarian cancer patients back in the 1970s. However, it is only with the advent of new developments in equipment in the late 1980s and early 1990s along with the vision of pioneers in laparoscopic surgery that has made operative laparoscopy in gynecologic oncology feasible. Laparoscopy has multiple benefits in the cancer patients, including image magnification to visualize metastatic or recurrent disease and improved dissection in challenging areas such as the paravesical and pararectal spaces. There is limited bleeding from small vessels because of the pressure from pneumoperitoneum, decreased hospital stay, and rapid recovery. Postoperative chemotherapy or radiation can be initiated earlier, and radiation complications from bowel adhesions are minimized. Significant progress has been made in the last 2 decades in gynecologic malignancy. In this study, the application of laparoscopy in cervical, endometrial, and ovarian cancer will be presented.