Robot-assisted laparoscopic radical cystectomy (RARC) for the treatment of muscle invasive bladder cancer is being increasingly applied. Radical cystectomy is complex procedure which should be performed with extensive lymph node dissection and urinary diversion. Currently, the techniques of RARC are well-described, and the feasibility and safety of RARC has been demonstrated. While extracorporeal approach is preferred method for urinary diversion, intracorporeal urinary diversion is gaining popularity. Positive surgical margins are similar to large open series but inferior for locally advanced disease. However, local recurrence and survival rates seem equivalent to open series at short and mid-term follow up. Randomized controlled trial should be conducted to rigorously assess the oncologic outcomes of RARC compared to open radical cystectomy.
Bladder cancer is the second most common malignancy in urological field. Most new cases are diagnosed as non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), which includes Ta, T1 or carcinoma in situ. Initial management of NMIBC is endoscopic resection, which allows both treatment and pathological staging. Urologist should consider adjuvant intravesical chemotherapy or Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) immunotherapy, depending on the tumor grade or stage to prevent recurrence and progression. Patients with muscle invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) are best treated with radical cystectomy. However, radical cystectomy should be considered even in patients with NMIBC with high risk of progression and BCG refractory tumors. Delay of radical cystectomy in these patients might lead decreased disease specific survival. Patients treated by radical cystectomy should undergo any form of the urinary diversion. Ileal conduit is still most common method for urinary diversion. Orthotopic neobladder is generally performed by experienced hands in high volume center. Patients undergoing orthotopic neobladder should be educated and manually skillful to manipulate their diversion. Neoadjuvant cisplatin-based chemotherapy is recommended based on level 1 evidence with survival benefit. Recent updated meta-analysis also demonstrated survival benefit in patients with MIBC treated by adjuvant chemotherapy.
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