Open radical cystectomy with lymphadenectomy remains the treatment of choice for invasive bladder cancer

Purpose of review Radical cystectomy with an appropriate lymph node dissection and an appropriate form of urinary diversion is the standard treatment for muscle-invasive transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder. Optimal outcomes following radical cystectomy require an extended lymph node dissection, negative surgical margins, and a continent urinary diversion. There has been an increasing number of reports describing initial experiences with laparoscopic radical cystectomy. Recent findings Intermediate and long-term oncologic outcomes with laparoscopic radical cystectomy remain undefined, and appropriate lymph node dissections laparoscopically have not been uniformly performed. Furthermore, the long-term functional outcomes associated with laparoscopically performed urinary diversions also remain undefined. There appears to be a recent trend toward performing the urinary diversion portion of the procedure extracorporeally, after laparoscopic removal of the bladder. Some studies suggest a decrease in postoperative analgesic requirements and quicker recovery of bowel function in those undergoing laparoscopic radical cystectomy, but these observations have not been corroborated by others. Summary In the absence of long-term functional and oncologic outcome data, laparoscopic radical cystectomy should be considered an investigative technique, and potential candidates for this operation should be appropriately counseled.