Laparoscopic colorectal resection for cancer: clearance, complications prevention

The first description of the laparoscopic approach to colorectal cancer resection was in 1991. Today, the exact role of laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery remains undefined and awaits the results of multicenter randomized controlled trials. Most authors agree that pending these results, such surgery should be performed only in specialist centers and on study populations. This hesitant adoption of the laparoscopic modality in colorectal cancer surgery is in stark contrast to the speed and enthusiasm with which laparoscopic cholecystectomy was adopted without a randomized controlled trial. Adapting laparoscopic techniques to malignant disease requires confirmation that the laparoscopic approach conforms to the principles of surgical oncology: adequacy of resection margins, wide clearance of lymph nodes fields, and the avoidance of iatrogenic tumor dissemination.