Robotic kidney cancer surgery shows desirable outcomes in study

Robotic surgery compared favorably with standard surgery in a review and analysis of data from 1,375 patients who underwent surgery to remove cancer from the kidney and inferior vena cava. The inferior vena cava (IVC), the body’s biggest vein, carries blood out of the kidneys back to the heart. Cancer can infiltrate this vein and advance to the liver and heart. Robotic IVC thrombectomy resulted in fewer blood transfusions and fewer complications overall in patients compared to standard, open IVC thrombectomy. The findings should compel further studies of the benefits of robotic IVC thrombectomy. Read the study in Science Daily.