- Hideki Tokunaga: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate surgical, pregnancy, and prognostic outcomes of radical abdominal trachelectomy (RAT) for Japanese patients with early-stage cervical cancer.
METHODS: This was a multicenter prospective cohort study conducted in member facilities of Tohoku Gynecologic Cancer Unit. Patients with FIGO 1A-1B1 squamous cell carcinoma were included.
RESULTS: A total of 42 patients were registered in this study, and all patients underwent planned RAT. The median stromal invasion and median horizontal spread of resected specimens were 4.6 (range 1.0-10.0) and 12.4 mm (range 3.0-28.0), respectively. The median surgical time and median blood loss were 304 min (range 233-611) and 848 mL (range 250-3984), respectively. Five patients (11.9 %) received blood transfusion. Five of 18 (27.8 %) patients who attempted to conceive achieved pregnancy, and 3 patients had healthy babies. However, all pregnancies required assisted reproductive technology with in-vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. Four patients (9.5 %) received postoperative adjuvant therapy, and 3 patients (7.1 %) developed disease recurrence.
CONCLUSIONS: RAT may be safely performed for Japanese patients with FIGO 1A-1B1 squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix, even in educational medical facilities. However, less-invasive surgery should be considered more often to improve pregnancy outcomes.