Objective: The aim of this study was to explore a new treatment strategy for left renal vein tumor thrombus directed at the thrombus level and the therapeutic effect of robotic surgery. Materials and Methods: Fifteen patients with left renal cell carcinoma with renal vein tumor thrombus (Mayo level 0) who underwent robotic radical nephrectomy and thrombectomy from July 2013 to July 2017 were included in this series. If the left renal vein thrombus transcended the superior mesenteric artery (SMA), the thrombus was classified as level 0b, the patient was positioned right side up for thrombectomy and repositioned left side up for nephrectomy, and angioembolization of left renal artery was necessary; otherwise, the thrombus was classified as level 0a and the patient was positioned left side up for both nephrectomy and thrombectomy. Baseline, perioperative, and follow-up data were analyzed. Results: Of all 15 patients, 10 had a level 0a tumor thrombus and 5 had a level 0b tumor thrombus. For level 0a patients, median operating time was 130 minutes, median estimated blood loss was 125 mL, with no patient receiving transfusion, and median hospital stay was 3.5 days. For level 0b patients, median operating time was 180 minutes, median estimated blood loss was 250 mL, with one patient receiving transfusion, and median hospital stay was 5 days. No perioperative complications or positive surgical margins occurred. For level 0a patients, one patient with preexisting lumbar vertebral metastasis died during a median follow-up of 39 months. For level 0b patients, all patients were alive at a median follow-up of 16.5 months. Conclusions: Our initial experience shows that the new treatment strategy for left renal vein tumor thrombus with the SMA as a dividing landmark directed at the thrombus level is safe and feasible. A larger cohort of level 0b patients and longer-term follow-up are needed to further assess the strategic advantages.
Keywords: kidney cancer; left renal vein; nephrectomy; robotic; thrombectomy.