One question the findings raise is whether women who have already had minimally invasive surgery for cervical cancer have a higher risk of recurrence than previously thought. Dr. Ramirez said most recurrences happen within the first two years after surgery, so women who had the operation more than two years ago may have little to worry about.

For those who had the surgery more recently, doctors are still trying to determine whether extra follow-up is needed. In any case, doctors said, long-term survival rates after both types of surgery are still high.

Dr. Ginger Gardner, a gynecologic oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, said the studies were important, and her hospital was examining its own surgical results and discussing the findings with patients. She said decisions were being made on a case-by-case basis, and that the minimally invasive approach might still be appropriate for some women.

“This turns us on our heads a bit,” said Dr. Lee-may Chen, director of the gynecologic oncology division of the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of California, San Francisco. “We thought laparoscopic surgery would be good for this patient population.”

She said that because of the findings, she now encourages most patients to have open surgery for cervical cancer. But she discusses the information with them, and would consider the minimally invasive approach for women who refuse open surgery, or for those who have a high risk of serious complications from open surgery.

Research had found that the minimally invasive approach, in use since around 2006, worked as well as open surgery to treat cancer of the uterus, which convinced many doctors that it would also be safe for cervical cancer.

But uterine cancer and cervical cancer are different diseases, and require different operations. Uterine cancer needs a simple hysterectomy, which means removing only the uterus.