Port-site metastasis after laparoscopic surgery for gynecologic cancer. A report of six cases.

BACKGROUND

Port-site metastasis after laparoscopic surgery for gynecologic cancer is a recognized entity.

CASES

Five patients underwent laparoscopic peritoneal biopsies for a stage III (n = 4) or IV (n = 1) ovarian cancer with moderate or poor differentiation. The sixth patient underwent a laparoscopic lymphadenectomy for vaginal carcinoma with bulky metastatic pelvic lymph nodes.

CONCLUSION

In order to avoid port-site metastasis, patients with an obviously malignant ovarian tumor and ascites should not be treated with laparoscopy using pneumoperitoneum. If a malignant ovarian tumor is discovered during laparoscopy, the interval between initial surgery and complete cytoreductive surgery (with resection of laparoscopic ports) followed by chemotherapy should be as short as possible. For patients with uterine cancer and bulky nodes, laparoscopic lymphadenectomy should be avoided to avoid trocar implantation metastasis.