Partial gland ablation using high-intensity focused ultrasound versus robot-assisted radical prostatectomy: a propensity score-matched study

BACKGROUND: We compared the clinical outcomes of robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) and partial gland ablation (PGA) using high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) in localized prostate cancer. METHODS: We analyzed 3,859 patients who had undergone RARP and PGA using HIFU. According to the propensity score for each treatment, 137 patients after PGA were matched to 3,722 patients after RARP at a 1:4 ratio using the nearest neighbor method. RESULTS: The matched cohort comprised 685 subjects (RARP, 548; PGA, 137), with a median follow-up period of 22 months. Treatment failures were identified in 13.9% and 9.1% of patients in the PGA and RARP groups, respectively, after a median follow-up of 36 months postoperatively. Kaplan–Meier analyses revealed significantly longer failure-free (P < 0.001) and salvage-free survival (P = 0.003) in the RARP group than in the PGA group. There was no significant difference in the postoperative urinary symptom score (P = 0.748), but the postoperative erectile function score was significantly higher in the PGA group (P < 0.001). The rate of urinary incontinence (any pad) was significantly lower in the PGA group than that in the RARP group (P < 0.001). Postoperative complications were more frequent in the PGA group (P = 0.003); however, there was no significant difference in high-grade complications (≥3) (P = 0.467). CONCLUSION: PGA using HIFU showed statistically inferior oncological outcomes compared with RARP for failure-free survival and salvage-free survival. However, functional outcomes regarding postoperative incontinence and erectile dysfunction were more favorable in the PGA group.