Advantages of Robotic Total Mesorectal Excision With Partial Prostatectomy Compared With Open Surgery for Rectal Cancer: A Single-Center Retrospective Cohort Study

Aim: Robotic total mesorectal excision (TME) with resection of adjacent organs has been increasingly used for locally advanced rectal cancer; however, few studies have focused on robotic TME with partial prostatectomy. Therefore, this study aimed to demonstrate the advantages of robotic TME with partial prostatectomy compared with open surgery for rectal cancer.

Method: This retrospective cohort study examined consecutive patients with rectal cancer who underwent robotic or open TME with partial prostatectomy at a high-volume center in Japan from April 2003 to March 2022. The patients were divided into robotic (n = 14) and open (n = 11) surgery groups. The short- and long-term outcomes of these patients were compared.

Results: More transabdominal partial prostatectomies were performed in the robotic surgery group than in the open surgery group (71.4% vs. 9.1%, p = 0.001). Moreover, sphincter-preserving surgery was performed in 35.7% of patients in the robotic surgery group. The robotic surgery group had shorter operative times (401 min vs. 435 min, p = 0.047), less blood loss (56 mL vs. 484 mL, p < 0.001), lower complication rates (28.6% vs. 72.7%, p = 0.047), and shorter postoperative hospital stays (8 days vs. 18 days, p < 0.001) than the open surgery group. No significant differences were observed in the positive radial margin rate (7.1% vs. 9.1%, p = 1.000) or long-term outcomes between the two groups.

Conclusion: Compared with open surgery, robotic TME with partial prostatectomy facilitates transabdominal partial prostatectomy, resulting in more sphincter-preserving surgeries and better short-term outcomes.