title: 'Mohs surgery of the prostate': the utility of in situ frozen section analysis during robotic prostatectomy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE • To evaluate a novel technique to lower positive surgical margin rates while preserving as much of the neurovascular bundles as possible during nerve-sparing robotic prostatectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS • In situ intraoperative frozen section (IFS) was performed during robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) when there was macroscopic concern for a positive margin or residual prostate tissue. • When IFS was positive, additional sections were taken from the same area until the IFS was negative, similar to the procedure of Mohs micrographic surgery. • Positive surgical margin and biochemical recurrence rates were compared between the patients who underwent IFS and those who did not. RESULTS • Of 970 patients consecutively undergoing RALP at a single institution, IFS was performed on 177 (18%). • Eleven patients (6%) had IFS positive for carcinoma, whereas another 25 (14%) had benign prostatic tissue in the IFS specimen. • IFS and non-IFS patients had similar pathological and nerve-sparing characteristics. • The IFS group had significantly lower rates of positive surgical margins, 7% vs 18% (P = 0.001) but similar rates of biochemical recurrence (5%) at a median follow-up of 11 months. CONCLUSIONS • In situ IFS is an effective way of reducing positive margins during RALP. • Twenty percent of patients who underwent IFS, representing 4% of the overall RALP population, had either malignant or benign prostate tissue removed from their prostatic fossa. • Although a reduction of biochemical recurrence was not demonstrated, the follow-up is short and a difference may become apparent as the data mature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, The Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Hugh J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Lavery
authors.forename: Guang-Qian
authors.initials: GQ
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Fatima
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nabizada-Pace
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mikulasovich
authors.forename: Pamela
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Unger
authors.forename: David B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Samadi
mesh_terms: D005629:Frozen Sections; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015580:Mohs Surgery; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000473:pathology; D011467:Prostate / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D011468:Prostatectomy / Q000379:methods*; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D012371:Robotics; D016896:Treatment Outcome