The surgical evolution of radical nephrectomy and tumor thrombectomy: a narrative review

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for 2–3% of all malignant disease in adults. RCC propagates into the renal vein and inferior vena cava (IVC) in up to 25% of patients with RCC. Despite advances in medical management such as immunotherapy, surgical resection remains the gold standard treatment of RCC with venous tumor thrombus (TT) extension. Surgical innovation has revolutionized the management of RCC with TT, reducing morbidity and mortality through advanced surgical techniques and minimally invasive approaches. The aim of this review is to summarize the evolving developments in the surgical treatment of RCC with venous TT. METHODS: We performed an advanced search on PubMed between the inception of the database and April 2022 to summarize the evolution of the surgical management of RCC with venous TT, focusing on the reports of key historical, current, and recent studies. KEY CONTENT AND FINDINGS: Implementation of entirely intraabdominal liver transplant-based approaches have allowed for successful surgical excision of higher-level tumor thrombi, obviating the need for sternotomy or cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Recent advances in robotic surgery provide a promising approach for minimally invasive management of RCC with venous TT extension. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical innovation has revolutionized the management of RCC with TT, reducing morbidity and mortality through minimally invasive techniques with preserved oncologic effectiveness.