e15123 Background: Cancer and cancer treatment increases the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Pelvic lymph nodes dissection (PLND) during radical prostatectomy increases the risk of VTE. Robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) is becoming increasingly popular, yet VTE data are not well reported. The aim of the study is to assess the rate of VTE in prostate cancer patients who underwent RARP with and without PLND. Methods: The records of 768 patients who underwent RARP by a single surgeon from 2008-2011 were reviewed for postoperative venous thromboembolism. Patient demographics, Gleason score, clinical stage, PSA, surgical approach and other operative variables were collected by prospective prostate cancer database. Information obtained from patient visit 6-8 weeks after the surgery was included in the database. VTE diagnosis was retrieved from inpatient and outpatient medical records. Fisher's exact test was used to determine the association between RARP with PLND and the occurrence of postoperative VTE. Results: Of the 768 patients who underwent RARP (mean age was 59.8 years, range: 40-77 years), 419 (54%) underwent PLND. Compared to patients who underwent RARP alone, patients who underwent RARP with PLND had higher PSA (mean PSA 7.3 vs. 5.3 p=0.0002), rate of Gleason score ≥ 7 (82% vs. 13% p=<0.0001) and more advanced tumor stage pT3 (39% vs. 12% p=<0.0001). Venous thromboembolism occurred in 5 of 419 (1.2%) patients who underwent RARP with PLND, and in 1 of 349 (0.28%) patients who underwent RARP (p=0.22). The lymph node metastasis rate was 7%. Conclusions: The incidence of VTE in prostate cancer patients treated with RARP is low. PLNDis not associated with a significantly increased risk of venous thromboembolism as compared to RARP alone.
