Abstract
BACKGROUND: Dexmedetomidine, an α-2 adrenoreceptor agonist, is commonly administered during cancer surgery as an adjuvant sedative because of its general anaesthetic agent-sparing effects. We investigated the association between ADRA2 gene expression and dexmedetomidine on oncological outcomes after surgery for clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC). METHODS: We conducted an in silico analysis using a publicly available database and a retrospective study in patients with clear cell RCC. The associations between ADRA2A expression and recurrence-free survival and overall survival were analysed. The same outcomes were investigated in a cohort of patients who underwent partial or total nephrectomy and received dexmedetomidine or not. A propensity score matching strategy was utilised to account for selection bias, and a multivariable analysis was performed to control for variables implicated in survival. RESULTS: Expression of the ADRA2A gene at the tumour level was not associated with recurrence-free survival; however, higher levels of expression were significantly associated with shorter overall survival. A total of 1766 patients with clear cell RCC were included in the retrospective study. Dexmedetomidine administration was not associated with higher rates of recurrence or mortality or with a significant impact on recurrence-free survival or overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: Intraoperative administration of dexmedetomidine was not associated with a significant impact on cancer progression and survival. The role of ADRA2A as a prognosis biomarker for clear cell RCC warrants further study.