Robotic versus hand-assisted laparoscopic living donor nephrectomy: comparison of two minimally invasive techniques in kidney transplantation.

Robot-assisted donor nephrectomy (RDN) is increasingly used due to its advantages such as its precision and reduced learning curve when compared to laparoscopic techniques. Concerns remain among surgeons regarding possible longer warm ischemia time. This study aimed to compare patients undergoing robotic living donor nephrectomy to the more frequently used hand-assisted laparoscopic nephrectomy (HLDN) technique, focusing on warm ischemia time, total operative time, learning curve, hospital length of stay, donor renal function and post-operative complications.

Substaging of pT1 Urothelial Bladder Carcinoma Predicts Tumor Progression and Overall Survival.

Introduction: Limitations in tumor staging and the heterogeneous natural evolution of pT1 urothelial bladder carcinoma (UBC) make the choice of treatment challenging. We evaluated if histopathological substaging (pT1a, pT1b, and pT1c) helps predict disease recurrence, progression, and overall survival following transurethral resection of the bladder (TURB).

Methods: We included 239 consecutive patients diagnosed with pT1 UBC at TURB in a single institution since 2001.