Transoral robot-assisted carbon dioxide laser surgery for hypopharyngeal cancer.

BACKGROUND Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) has been used as a novel procedure for the resection of laryngopharyngeal cancers with promising outcomes. There are several studies proposing the benefit of combining TORS with a carbon dioxide (CO2 ) laser in resecting upper aerodigestive tract tumors. The purpose of this study was to illustrate transoral robot-assisted carbon dioxide laser surgery (TORS-L) for hypopharyngeal cancers. METHODS A 59-year-old patient with T1N0M0 cancer at the lateral hypopharyngeal wall was selected for TORS-L. RESULTS Tumor was excised in 1 piece with adequate surgical margins. There was no perioperative complication. The patient was extubated immediately after surgery. Oral diet was initiated within the first 24 hours. No gastrostomy or tracheostomy tube placement was required. A video demonstration of TORS-L is included, which can be viewed online on Head & Neck's home page at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1097-0347. CONCLUSION TORS-L hypopharyngectomy is a safe and feasible procedure for the resection of selected hypopharyngeal tumors.