[Laparoscopic therapy of colorectal cancer--wishful thinking or realism?]

The laparoscopic resection of the colon and rectum is established for surgery of benign diseases. The main advantages compared to the open-conventional operation technique are reduced postoperative pain, reduced negative influences on pulmonary and gastrointestinal functions as well as a shorter reconvalescence. Minimally invasive curative resections of colorectal carcinomas are still controversially discussed concerning sufficient radicality and the spread of tumor cells. The given oncological standards of the conventional approach can be kept without restriction when resections of the colon and rectum are performed laparoscopically. Newer comparative studies do not describe raised recurrence or lower survival rates following the minimal-invasive procedure. In the coming years prospective randomized multicenter studies must give proof whether or not the long-term survival is comparable with the conventional approach.