A Trial Comparing - Robotic Assisted Versus Laparoscopic Partial Nephrectomy For Small Renal Masses

Small renal masses (SRM) \<4cm are increasingly being discovered incidentally on imaging. The standard of care for management of SRMs is partial nephrectomy whenever feasible. In the last 10 years, a minimally invasive laproscopic approach has largely supplanted open surgery for the treatment of SRMs. Robot-assisted laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (RALPN) has emerged as an alternative to laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN) and has been able to bridge the technical difficulties of LPN. The big question about the role and cost of RALPN in comparison to LPN especially in Canadian healthcare for SRMs still remains unanswered. The objective of this proposed study is to conduct a randomized controlled trial to determine whether RALPN is better than LPN for the management of patients with SRMs. The primary outcomes will be warm ischemia time and secondary outcomes will be estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), estimated blood loss, complication rate, length of hospital stay, positive surgical margin rate and cost comparison of these two techniques.