Robotic radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy for uterine rhabdomyosarcoma

Abstract

Mullerian rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a rare malignancy most commonly diagnosed in childhood and adolescence. RMS of the female genital tract is often difficult to diagnose. Treatment includes chemotherapy with adjuvant surgery and/or radiation therapy reserved for persistent disease. We report a case of an 18-year-old African-American female who presented with severe menometrorrhagia, and was diagnosed with embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the uterus. After vincristine, dactinomycin, and cyclophosphamide failed to eradicate the central tumor, she underwent a robotic radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy. Mullerian rhabdomyosarcoma was once managed with multimodality therapy that often included ultraradical surgery including total pelvic exenteration. Surgical procedures that were exclusively performed via large abdominal incisions can now be completed with minimally invasive techniques. Robotic surgery can be safely and successfully applied to radical hysterectomy and lymphadenectomy for uterine rhabdomyosarcoma.

Keywords: Morbid obesity; Robotic radical hysterectomy; Robotic surgery; Sarcoma botryoides; Uterine rhabdomyosarcoma.