Health-Related Quality of Life Following Robotic-Assisted or Video-Assisted Lobectomy in Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Results From the RVlob Randomized Clinical Trial

Runsen Jin; Zhengyuan Zhang; Yuyan Zheng; Zhenyi Niu; Siying Sun; Yuqin Cao; Yajie Zhang; Abbas E Abbas; Toni Lerut; Jules Lin; Hecheng Li

doi:10.1016/j.chest.2022.12.037

Health-Related Quality of Life Following Robotic-Assisted or Video-Assisted Lobectomy in Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Results From the RVlob Randomized Clinical Trial

Chest. 2023 Jun;163(6):1576-1588. doi: 10.1016/j.chest.2022.12.037. Epub 2023 Jan 5.

Authors

Runsen Jin¹, Zhengyuan Zhang¹, Yuyan Zheng¹, Zhenyi Niu¹, Siying Sun¹, Yuqin Cao¹, Yajie Zhang¹, Abbas E Abbas², Toni Lerut³, Jules Lin⁴, Hecheng Li⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Thoracic Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
² Department of Thoracic Surgery, Brown Surgical Associates and Lifespan Hospitals, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI.
³ Department of Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
⁴ Section of Thoracic Surgery, University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI.
⁵ Department of Thoracic Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China. Electronic address: lihecheng2000@hotmail.com.

PMID: 36621757
DOI: 10.1016/j.chest.2022.12.037

Abstract

Background: Robot-assisted lobectomy (RAL) is increasingly used as an alternative to video-assisted lobectomy (VAL) for resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, there is little evidence of any difference in postoperative health-related quality of life (HRQoL) between these two approaches.

Research question: Is RAL superior to VAL in improving quality of life in patients with resectable NSCLC?

Study design and methods: We performed a single-center, open-label randomized clinical trial from May 2017 to May 2020 with 320 enrolled patients undergoing RAL or VAL for resectable NSCLC (RVlob trial; NCT03134534). Postoperative pain was evaluated by visual analog score or numeric rating score on postoperative day 1 and at weeks 4, 24, and 48. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30), EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire in Lung Cancer (QLQ-LC13), and the European Quality of Life 5 Dimensions (EQ-5D) questionnaire were also administered at weeks 4, 24, and 48 after surgery.

Results: One hundred and fifty-seven patients underwent RAL and 163 underwent VAL. The mean pain score of patients after RAL was significantly lower at week 4 (2.097 ± 0.111 vs 2.431 ± 0.108; P = .032). QLQ-C30 and QLQ-LC13 summary scores (P > .05) were similar for both RAL and VAL during the first 48 weeks of follow-up. HRQoL scores assessed with the EQ-5D questionnaire were also comparable between the two groups (P > .05) during the whole study period.

Interpretation: Both RAL and VAL showed satisfactory and comparable HRQoL and postoperative pain up to 48 weeks after surgery, despite some minor statistical differences at week 4.

Clinical trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov; No.: NCT03134534; URL: www.

Clinicaltrials: gov.

Keywords: non-small cell lung cancer; postoperative pain; quality of life; randomized controlled trial; robot-assisted lobectomy; video-assisted lobectomy.

Publication types

Randomized Controlled Trial
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* / drug therapy
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* / surgery
Humans
Lung Neoplasms* / drug therapy
Lung Neoplasms* / surgery
Pain, Postoperative / epidemiology
Quality of Life
Robotic Surgical Procedures*

Associated data

ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT03134534
ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT03134534