Robotic transoral approach for salvage retropharyngeal node dissection: an analysis of functional and oncological outcomes.

Presence of metastatic tumour in the retropharyngeal node has a negative impact on the prognosis. We present here our 5-year experience and the outcomes of transoral robotic retropharyngeal node dissection (RPND) in salvage settings. Hospital database was accessed to extract details of patients with head and neck cancer who developed retropharyngeal (RP) node metastasis. Patients who underwent transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for RPND in salvage settings were included for the study. Patients were first followed-up after 10 days of discharge and then on a monthly basis after completion of treatment. At each follow-up, swallow functions and disease status were recorded. A total of 10 patients met the inclusion criteria and underwent salvage transoral robotic RPND. The total number of lymph nodes removed from these patients were 11, with all having malignant tumour deposits. The median follow-up was 20 months. Four patients developed distant metastasis. There were no major procedure-related complications. Our experience suggests that TORS as treatment modality is oncologically sound and feasible for salvage RP node dissection.Level of evidence Retrospective Study (3).