Laparoscopic transperitoneal nephrectomy for renal cancer: the University of California, Irvine, technique.

The first laparoscopic nephrectomy for a renal tumor was performed 20 years ago at Washington University in St. Louis. Since that time, laparoscopic radical nephrectomy has become a standard of care when dealing with large renal tumors or other renal cancers not amenable to partial nephrectomy or ablative therapy. In the following article and videotape, the surgical technique of a laparoscopic radical nephrectomy is traced and the method of approach is documented. This approach is the one that is currently used at the University of California, Irvine, and reflects the authors' preferred operative technique.