Developing technical expertise in robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy in a moderate-volume center through a proctor-based team approach

Our aim is to report our preliminary experience of a proctor-based team approach in robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) for the treatment of localized prostate cancer. Data was collected between December 2008 and February 2012. RALP was performed on 100 consecutive patients with prostate cancer by a team of five urologists proctored by two fellowship-trained surgeons from a single hospital. Clinical and pathological data of these patients were reviewed. The mean age of the patients was 66 years (range 48–76). Clinical stages were 82 % cT1c, 3 % cT1b, 13 % cT2a and 2 % cT3a disease. Preoperative mean prostate-specific antigen level was 11.33 ng/ml (SD 10.47). Mean operative time was 342 min and mean blood loss was 717 ml (SD 988). Mean hospital stay and duration of the indwelling catheter were 3.2 days (SD 1.8) and 12.6 days (SD 8.5), respectively. Pathological staging showed 65 patients with pT2a (65 %) disease and 33 patients with pT3a (33 %) disease. Thirty-five patients (35 %) had positive surgical margins. Eighteen patients underwent adjuvant radiotherapy. Overall postoperative complication rate was 14 %. There were six Clavien grade 1 complications, seven Clavien grade 2 complications and one Clavien grade 3 complication. At mean follow-up of 36 months, 100 % of patients remained free of biochemical recurrence with continence at 70 %. Our proctor-based team approach will continue to improve each surgeon’s technical competency. He or she will continue to improve and gradually move on to achieving his or her outcomes learning curve.