HCP Associate Professor Nancy L. Keating, PhD, and colleagues recently published the article, "Comparative Effectiveness of Minimally Invasive vs. Open Radical Prostatectomy" in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Between 2003 and 2007, the researchers identified 1,938 men with prostate cancer who underwent minimally invasive radical prostatectomy (MIRP) and 6,899 men who underwent retropubic radical prostatectomy (RRP). The investigators considered 30-day complications postoperatively, anastomotic stricture 31 to 365 days postoperatively, long-term incontinence and erectile dysfunction more than 18 months postoperatively, and the use of additional cancer therapies postoperatively. The study showed that men undergoing MIRP versus RRP experienced shorter hospital stays, fewer respiratory and miscellaneous surgical complications and strictures, and comparable postoperative use of additional cancer therapies but experienced more genitourinary complications, incontinence, and erectile dysfunction.

The study received widespread media coverage, including from the Boston Globe, New York Times, AP, Bloomberg News, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and WebMD.