Abdominal operations for intraabdominal metastases from extraabdominal primary tumors

Forty consecutive patients with an extraabdominal primary tumor, later treated surgically for intraabdominal problems, were investigated. The most common causes of abdominal operations were intestinal obstruction (N = 17), intraabdominal tumor mass (N = 8), and intraabdominal hemorrhage (N = 5). The overall postoperative mortality was 25%, morbidity 48%, median survival 3 months, and cumulative 5 year survival 3%. The mortality after emergency procedures, 67%, was significantly higher (P less than 0.01) than after elective operations, 18%. Conditions requiring enterostomy (N = 14) were associated with a mortality of 36%, whereas the figures in resected (N = 13) and bypassed (N = 7) patients were 14% and 17%, respectively. Wound infection (N = 5) and pulmonary infection (N = 5) were the most common complications, and pulmonary infection was fatal in three of the five cases. Of the patients, 22 (55%) were discharged from hospital to their home; ten (25%) of them had postoperatively a 3 month relief of cancer symptoms and four (10%) a 6 month relief. Nine patients (25%) have survived for over 1 year and one (3%) for over 5 years. It is concluded that abdominal procedures seldom prevent further cancer growth within these patients and that symptoms are relieved only in one in every four patients. According to strict criteria, these operations are useful and can add to patient comfort.