Para-aortic plus pelvic lymphadenectomy in locally advanced cervical cancer: A single institutional experience

The aim of the study is to assess the safety and efficacy of transperitoneal laparoscopic para-aortic and pelvic lymphadenectomy in the setting of surgical staging of patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC), and to analyse the prognostic value and impact of this staging on the survival prognosis of this condition.

Data from 67 patients with LACC who underwent transperitoneal laparoscopic para-aortic and pelvic lymphadenectomy and who received chemo-radiation therapy were retrospectively analysed.

Metastatic lymph nodes (LN) were identified in 32 patients (47.7%), 20 (29.8%) had metastatic LN in the pelvic area and 12 (17.9%) had metastatic LN in the pelvic and para-aortic area. There were no skip metastases in the para-aortic area. After a median follow-up of 54.6 months (5-122.2 months), the 5-year local control and disease-free survival (DFS) rates for the whole group were 91.1% and 60.5% respectively. The five-year DFS for patients without LN metastasis was 86.4%, while for patients with pelvic LN metastases or pelvic and para-aortic metastases was 34.2% and 24.2% respectively (p < 0.001). The five-year overall survival (OS) for the whole group was 67.3%. The mortality rate in patients with para-aortic nodal metastases was increased compared to patients with negative nodes (5-year OS 21.3% vs 81.6% respectively, p = 0.005), but the OS rate was similar in patients with negative nodes and those with only pelvic nodes affected (5-year OS 81.6% vs 70.8% respectively, p = 0.380). This approach allowed the modification of the initial treatment plan in the para-aortic area in 13.4% of patients and in the pelvic area in 28.3%. The overall intraoperative morbidity rate was 5.9%, while the postoperative morbidity rate was 10.4%, with only 3 patients presenting grade 3 morbidity.

Transperitoneal para-aortic and pelvic lymphadenectomy provides precise information about nodal state and allows personalized treatment planning in patients with LACC, avoiding false negative (FN) and false positive (FP) imaging results. In 17.9% of patients, the external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) field had to include the aortic area, whilst 47.7% received pelvic boost to the involved nodes.