Robot-assisted nephroureterectomy: current perspectives

Xin Ling Teo, Sey Kiat Lim Department of Urology, Changi General Hospital, Singapore Abstract: Robot-assisted surgery was just a medical curiosity until the development of the daVinci robotic system, and since then, it has become a widely accepted surgical treatment for many urological conditions such as prostate carcinoma and renal cell carcinoma. With the increase in the number of urologists using the robot and the improvement in surgeon experience, the use of the robot has been expanded to include performing radical nephroureterectomy (NU) for the treatment of primary upper tract urothelial carcinoma. We performed a literature review on robot-assisted laparoscopic NU with the aim of providing a current perspective on robot-assisted laparoscopic NU for the management of upper tract urothelial carcinoma. Surgical technique, perioperative outcomes, and oncological outcomes are discussed. Keywords: robot, nephroureterectomy, urothelial carcinoma