2018 Volume 31 Issue 2 Pages 260-265
To assess the effectiveness of laparoscopic adrenalectomy for patients with malignant adrenal tumors, we compared perioperative details of patients who received laparoscopic adrenalectomies for benign versus malignant tumors performed in Yokohama City University Hospital between August 2003 and June 2015.
Patients were divided into two groups : 133 patients with benign adrenal tumors (65 primary aldosteronism, 33 Cushing’s syndrome, 21 pheochromocytoma, and 14 other adenomas) versus 16 those with malignant tumors (14 metastatic tumors and two adrenal cortical carcinomas).
The average diameter of the tumor at diagnosis in the malignant group was significantly larger than that in the benign group : 40.5 and 26.9 cm, respectively. There were no significant differences between the two groups regarding the mean blood loss, total operative time, or postoperative period of hospitalization.
There were ten patients with perioperative complications in the benign group, including bleeding and adjacent organ injuries, whereas there were no complications in the malignant group. There were neither open adrenalectomy conversions nor deaths in either group.
Therefore, laparoscopic adrenalectomy can be safely carried out even for malignant adrenal tumors.
