Robot-assisted gastrectomy for early gastric cancer: is it beneficial in viscerally obese patients compared to laparoscopic gastrectomy?

BACKGROUND: The adoption of robotic systems for gastric cancer surgery has been proven feasible and safe; however, a benefit over the laparoscopic approach has not yet been well-documented. We aimed to investigate the surgical outcomes of robotic versus laparoscopic gastrectomy for gastric cancer, according to the extent of surgery and patients' obesity status.
METHODS: Between January 2009 and July 2011, 770 patients were enrolled in this retrospective analysis. All had stage IA/IB gastric cancer preoperatively and underwent either laparoscopic (n = 622) or robotic (n = 148) gastrectomy. Patients were classified into obese and non-obese groups on the basis of visceral fat area (VFA). The extent of surgery was defined by whether patients underwent distal or total gastrectomy.
RESULTS: The surgical outcomes following distal gastrectomy were similar between the robotic and laparoscopic groups regardless of the obesity status. After total gastrectomy, the number of total and N2-area lymph nodes were significantly higher in the robotic group than in the laparoscopic group in non-obese patients with VFA < 100 cm(2) (total, 38.8 vs. 46.5; p = 0.018; N2 area, 9.0 vs. 12.4; p = 0.041), but no significant differences were observed in obese population. Robotic group developed less severe complications after total gastrectomy compared to laparoscopic group in non-obese patients (p = 0.036).
CONCLUSION: Robotic assistance did not improve surgical outcomes over the laparoscopic approach in obese patients undergoing distal gastrectomy. However, non-obese patients with low VFA may benefit from robotic assistance during total gastrectomy in terms of radical D2 lymphadenectomy with fewer serious complications.