Healthcare Resource Utilization After Surgical Treatment of Cancer: Value of Minimally Invasive Surgery

BACKGROUND: As the US healthcare system moves towards value-based care, hospitals have increased efforts to improve quality and reduce unnecessary resource use. Surgery is one of the most resource-intensive areas of healthcare and we aim to compare health resource utilization between open and minimally invasive cancer procedures. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed cancer patients who underwent colon resection, rectal resection, lobectomy, or radical nephrectomy within the Premier hospital database between 2014 and 2019. Study outcomes included length of stay (LOS), discharge status, reoperation, and 30-day readmission. The open surgical approach was compared to minimally invasive approach (MIS), with subgroup analysis of laparoscopic/video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (LAP/VATS) and robotic (RS) approaches, using inverse probability of treatment weighting. RESULTS: MIS patients had shorter LOS compared to open approach: − 1.87 days for lobectomy, − 1.34 days for colon resection, − 0.47 days for rectal resection, and − 1.21 days for radical nephrectomy (all p < .001). All MIS procedures except for rectal resection are associated with higher discharge to home rates and lower reoperation and readmission rates. Within MIS, robotic approach was further associated with shorter LOS than LAP/VATS: − 0.13 days for lobectomy, − 0.28 days for colon resection, − 0.67 days for rectal resection, and − 0.33 days for radical nephrectomy (all p < .05) and with equivalent readmission rates. CONCLUSION: Our data demonstrate a significant shorter LOS, higher discharge to home rate, and lower rates of reoperation and readmission for MIS as compared to open procedures in patients with lung, kidney, and colorectal cancer. Patients who underwent robotic procedures had further reductions in LOS compare to laparoscopic/video-assisted thoracoscopic approach, while the reductions in LOS did not lead to increased rates of readmission. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00464-022-09189-8.