Oncologic Surgery for Lower Gastrointestinal Tumors during Pregnancy: A Literature Review

Colorectal cancer (CRC) during pregnancy can be a challenging situation due to the spatial confinement of the tumor with the growing uterus carrying the fetus. It is one of the more common tumor entities occurring in pregnant women, and therefore, it has to be taken into account if "patients describe suspicious" symptoms.

Diagnosis and treatment are complex and require a specialized multidisciplinary team of visceral oncologists with expertise in colorectal surgery, gastrointestinal oncologists, gynecologists, obstetricians, and neonatologists to coordinate the optimal treatment plan with the patient. Multimodal treatment options depend on gestational age and tumor stage. Radical surgical oncologic therapy at the latest possible stage of pregnancy is often the only feasible, potentially curative treatment option. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy should be postponed to the postpartum period, if possible. Neonatological aspects, including the high risk of serious complications for the infant during and after anesthesia for oncologic surgery, such as cerebral hemorrhage, pulmonary hypoplasia, and necrotizing enterocolitis, must always be in the focus when considering the optimal timing of surgery, as well as the prognosis of the mother concerning her tumor.

Treatment of CRC during pregnancy is based on highly individualized therapeutic decisions rather than on standardized guideline recommendations. Surgical resection via partial colectomy, anterior rectal resections, and abdominoperineal extirpations are feasible. However, it has always to be considered if surgery has to be performed in elective situations or damage control procedures due to emergencies, such as mechanical ileus or perforations with intra-abdominal sepsis.