ASCO: alvimopan helpful for men undergoing testicular CA surgery

(HealthDay)—For men with testicular cancer undergoing retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RPLND), alvimopan may reduce hospital length of stay (LOS) and enhance gastrointestinal recovery, according to a study presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, held from Feb. 16 to 18 in Orlando, Fla.

Kushan Dilip Radadia, M.D., from Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, N.J., and colleagues examined whether alvimopan is associated with enhanced gastrointestinal recovery and shorter LOS in 29 men undergoing RPLND by a single surgeon for testicular cancer. Eight of the participants received alvimopan and 21 did not.

The researchers observed no between-group differences in preoperative or operative variables. Patients receiving alvimopan had a mean hospital length of stay of four days compared with six days among men not receiving alvimopan (P = 0.074). The median time to return of flatus was two and four days for men receiving versus those not receiving alvimopan, respectively (P = 0.0023). The median time to first bowel movement was 2.5 versus four days for those receiving versus not receiving alvimopan (P = 0.0028).

"Strategies that enhance post-surgery recovery, such as the adoption of alvimopan in recovery pathways, may minimize gastrointestinal side effects and shorten the length of hospital stay for these men," a coauthor said in a statement.