This systematic review and meta-analysis of 18 studies shows that robotic surgery (rs) significantly decreases the risk of circumferential resection margin (crm) positivity in rectal cancer patients undergoing mesorectal excision, with a relative risk of 0.82 (95% CI, 0.73-0.92; p=0.001). The combined data from 4 randomized controlled trials and 14 propensity score matching studies, encompassing 9,203 patients, illustrate the benefits of rs over conventional laparoscopic surgery (ls) in achieving better postoperative outcomes.
• Why it matters: Uncertainty remains whether robotic surgery reduces circumferential margin positivity in rectal cancer.
Review by Ishizuka M, Shibuya N (…) Mizushima T et 11 al. in Eur J Surg Oncol
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