Recent advances of robotic surgery and single port laparoscopy in gynecologic oncology

Two innovative approaches in minimally invasive surgery that have been introduced recently are the da Vinci robotic platform and single port laparoscopic surgery (SPLS). Robotic surgery has many advantages such as 3-dimensional view, the wrist like motion of the robotic arm and ergonomically comfortable position for the surgeon. Numerous literatures have demonstrated the feasibility of robotic surgery in gynecologic oncology. However, further research should be performed to demonstrate the superiority of robotic surgery compared to conventional laparoscopy. Additionally, cost reduction of robotic surgery is needed to adopt robotic surgery into gynecologic oncology worldwide. SPLS has several possible benefits including reduced operative complications, reduced postoperative pain, and better cosmetic results compared to conventional laparoscopy. Although several authors have indicated that SPLS is a feasible approach for gynecologic surgery, there have been few reports demonstrating the potential advantages over conventional laparoscopy. Moreover, technical difficulties of SPLS still exist. Therefore, the advantages of a single port approach compared to conventional laparoscope should be evaluated with comparative study, and further technologic development for SPLS is also needed. These two progressive technologies take the lead in the development of MIS and further studies should be performed to evaluate the benefits of robot surgery and SPLS.