Robotics in cancer care: a systematic evidence map of clinical applications, patient-centered evidence, and psychosocial gaps

Objectives: Robotic technologies increasingly shape how cancer care is delivered and experienced, but the literature remains focused on platforms and conventional clinical outcomes. This systematic evidence map examined publication growth and thematic structure from 2016 to 2025 and assessed the visibility of patient-reported, psychosocial, social, ethical, and implementation concerns. Methods: Web of Science and Scopus articles and reviews were harmonized, deduplicated, and screened using a rule-assisted workflow. The primary corpus comprised 12,587 eligible records; 12,274 records with abstracts underwent non-negative matrix factorization. An expanded-search diagnostic sample included 620 records, of which 87 were marked for inclusion by both assessors and added to a 12,674-record audit inventory. Unmatched records were not screened exhaustively, and all estimates derive from the primary corpus. Results: Annual output rose from 746 records in 2016 to 1,944 in 2025, and robot-assisted oncologic surgery accounted for 81.6% of records. The ten topics clustered around cancer sites, procedures, evidence synthesis, and conventional outcomes; none focused primarily on psychological or social care. Patient-centered indicators were visible in 2,462 records (19.6%). The expanded audit did not alter the primary-corpus estimates. Conclusion: Despite rapid publication growth, patient-centered concerns did not become more visible in the metadata over time. The map captures the presence of psychosocial constructs in indexed metadata, not their measurement with validated instruments or their effects. Future studies should pair clinical outcomes with psychological adjustment, decision quality, social participation, caregiver effects, accessibility, and ethical safeguards.