Robotic-Assisted Surgery in the Head and Neck

Abstract

Background

Robotic surgery was first used in medicine in the 1980s for laparoscopic surgery. Since then, several developments have been made in the use of robotic surgery for patients with head and neck cancer.

Methods

A review was performed of the literature on robotic surgery in patients with head and neck cancer. The various sites of application are discussed in depth as well as the functional and oncological outcomes associated with the most common application of transoral robotic surgery (TORS).

Results

Robotic surgery has been used in all aspects of head and neck surgery. The results from early studies of TORS have shown at least equivalent functional and oncological outcomes.

Conclusions

Robotic surgery has feasible utility in patients with head and neck cancer; moreover, in several circumstances it may provide superior cosmetic, functional, and oncological outcomes than conventional methods.

References

Camarillo

D.B.

, Krummel

T.M.

, Salisbury

J.K.

Jr . Robotic technology in surgery: past, present, and future. Am J Surg. 2004; 188 (4A suppl): 2S–15S.

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. FDA clears transoral robotic surgery – developed at Penn – for tumors of mouth, throat and voice box. Published December 18, 2009. http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/News_Releases/2009/12/tors-robotic-head-neck-surgery. Accessed January 2, 2015.

Y.I.

, Tsue

T.T.

, Girod

D.A.

. Functional swallowing outcomes following transoral robotic surgery vs primary chemoradiotherapy in patients with advanced-stage oropharynx and supraglottis cancers [Erratum appeasrs in JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2013; 139(3): 292]. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2013; 139(1): 43–48.

Iseli

T.A.

, Kulbersh

B.D.

, Iseli

C.E.

. Functional outcomes after transoral robotic surgery for head and neck cancer. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2009; 141(2): 166–171.

White

H.N.

, Frederick

, Zimmerman

. Learning curve for transoral robotic surgery: a 4-year analysis. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2013; 139(6): 564–567.

Iloreta

A.M.

, Anderson

, Miles

B.A.

. Mandibular osteotomy for expanded transoral robotic surgery: a novel technique. Laryngoscope. 2014; 124(8): 1836–1842.

O'Malley

B.W.

Jr , Weinstein

G.S.

, Snyder

. Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for base of tongue neoplasms. Laryngoscope. 2006; 116(8): 1465–1472.

Moore

E.J.

, Janus

, Kasperbauer

. Transoral robotic surgery of the oropharynx: clinical and anatomic considerations. Clin Anat. 2012; 25(1): 135–141.

Weinstein

G.S.

, O'Malley

B.W.

Jr , Snyder

. Transoral robotic surgery: radical tonsillectomy. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2007; 133(12): 1220–1226.

10.

Durmus

, Rangarajan

S.V.

, Old

M.O.

. Transoral robotic approach to carcinoma of unknown primary. Head Neck. 2014; 36(6): 848–852.

11.

Graboyes

E.M.

, Sinha

, Thorstad

W.L.

. Management of human papillomavirus-related unknown primaries of the head and neck with a transoral surgical approach. Head Neck. 2014. [Epub ahead of print].

12.

Patel

S.A.

, Magnuson

J.S.

, Holsinger

F.C.

. Robotic surgery for primary head and neck squamous cell carcinoma of unknown site. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2013; 139(11): 1203–1211.

13.

O'Malley

B.W.

Jr , Quon

, Leonhardt

F.D.

. Transoral robotic surgery for parapharyngeal space tumors. ORL J Otorhinolaryngol Relat Spec. 2010; 72(6): 332–336.

14.

Chan

J.Y.

, Tsang

R.K.

, Eisele

D.W.

. Transoral robotic surgery of the parapharyngeal space: a case series and systematic review. Head Neck. 2015; 37(2): 293–298.

15.

Park

Y.M.

, Kim

W.S.

, Byeon

H.K.

. Feasiblity of transoral robotic hypopharyngectomy for early-stage hypopharyngeal carcinoma. Oral Oncol. 2010; 46(8): 597–602.

16.

Park

Y.M.

, Kim

W.S.

, De Virgilio

. Transoral robotic surgery for hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma: 3-year oncologic and functional analysis. Oral Oncol. 2012; 48(6): 560–566.

17.

Lallemant

, Chambon

, Garrel

. Transoral robotic surgery for the treatment of T1–T2 carcinoma of the larynx: preliminary study. Laryngoscope. 2013; 123(10): 2485–2490.

18.

Smith

R.V.

, Schiff

B.A.

, Sarta

. Transoral robotic total laryngectomy. Laryngoscope. 2013; 123(3): 678–682.

19.

Lee

, Chung

W.Y.

. Robotic surgery for thyroid disease. Eur Thyroid J. 2013; 2(2): 93–101.

20.

Sun

G.H.

, Peress

, Pynnonen

M.A.

. Systematic review and meta-analysis of robotic vs conventional thyroidectomy approaches for thyroid disease. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2014; 150(4): 520–532.

21.

Singer

M.C.

, Terris

D.J.

. Robotic facelift thyroidectomy. Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2014; 47(3): 425–431.

22.

Tae

, Ji

Y.B.

, Song

C.M.

. Robotic selective neck dissection by a postauricular facelift approach: comparison with conventional neck dissection. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2014; 150(3): 394–400.

23.

Carrau

R.L.

, Prevedello

D.M.

, de Lara

. Combined transoral robotic surgery and endoscopic endonasal approach for the resection of extensive malignancies of the skull base. Head Neck. 2013; 35(11): E351–E358.

24.

Mehta

, Johnson

, Tassler

. A new paradigm for the diagnosis and management of unknown primary tumors of the head and neck: a role for transoral robotic surgery. Laryngoscope. 2013; 123(1): 146–151.

25.

Duprez

, Madani

, De Potter

. Systematic review of dose-volume correlates for structures related to late swallowing disturbances after radiotherapy for head and neck cancer. Dysphagia. 2013; 28(3): 337–349.

26.

Koyfman

S.A.

, Adelstein

D.J.

. Enteral feeding tubes in patients undergoing definitive chemoradiation therapy for head-and-neck cancer: a critical review. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2012; 84(3): 581–589.

27.

Hurtuk

, Agrawal

, Old

. Outcomes of transoral robotic surgery: a preliminary clinical experience. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2011; 145(2): 248–253.

28.

Genden

E.M.

, Kotz

, Tong

C.C.

. Transoral robotic resection and reconstruction for head and neck cancer. Laryngoscope. 2011; 121(8): 1668–1674.

29.

Moore

E.J.

, Olsen

K.D.

, Kasperbauer

J.L.

. Transoral robotic surgery for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma: a prospective study of feasibility and functional outcomes. Laryngoscope. 2009; 119(11): 2156–2164.

30.

Weinstein

G.S.

, O'Malley

B.W.

Jr , Cohen

M.A.

. Transoral robotic surgery for advanced oropharyngeal carcinoma. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2010; 136(11): 1079–1085.

31.

Hans

, Badoual

, Gorphe

. Transoral robotic surgery for head and neck carcinomas. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2012; 269(8): 1979–1984.

32.

Weinstein

G.S.

, O'Malley

B.W.

Jr , Magnuson

J.S.

. Transoral robotic surgery: a multicenter study to assess feasibility, safety, and surgical margins. Laryngoscope. 2012; 122(8): 1701–1707.

33.

Moore

E.J.

, Olsen

S.M.

, Laborde

R.R.

. Long-term functional and oncologic results of transoral robotic surgery for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Mayo Clin Proc. 2012; 87(3): 219–225.

34.

White

H.N.

, Moore

E.J.

, Rosenthal

E.L.

. Transoral robotic-assisted surgery for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: one- and 2-year survival analysis. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2010; 136(12): 1248–1252.