Comparison of intraoperative and early postoperative results of patients undergoing laparoscopic versus laparotomic staging surgery for ovarian cancer

Thus far, the traditional method of performing staging surgery in ovarian cancer has been laparotomy. Although randomized controlled trials are lacking, minimally invasive options are deemed safe and sufficient for staging and treatment of early-stage ovarian cancer. This study aims to compare the intraoperative and early postoperative outcomes of patients who underwent staging surgery via laparoscopy or laparotomy because of ovarian cancer. This retrospective study was conducted among 37 patients undergoing staging surgery done via laparoscopy (Group 1) or laparotomy (Group 2) between February 2018 and May 2022 at a single center. Intraoperative and early postoperative results were collected. Regarding postoperative complications between the two groups, the formation of lymphoceles and hernias in Group 2 was significantly higher compared to Group 1 (p = 0.019 and p = 0.050, respectively). When these groups were compared regarding Clavien-Dindo classification, Grade 1 complications were high among the laparoscopy group. In contrast, Grade 2, 3A and 3B complications were significantly higher in the laparotomy group (p = 0.002). Regarding hospital stay during the postoperative period, the patients in Group 2 stayed significantly longer compared to Group 1 (p = 0.001). As an alternative to open surgery for diagnosing and staging ovarian cancer, the laparoscopic approach is reliable and can be applied safely to patients. However, more prospective randomized studies are needed to support the obtained data.