[Surgical treatment of obstructive colonic cancer]

A clinical study is presented, that was performed on a group of 81 patients hospitalized and operated as emergencies for occluding neoplasia of the colon between 1973 and 1976. As compared with the total number of patients operated for intestinal occlusion obstructive cancer of the colon represented an index of 14,78%. An analysis is made of the frequency of the occurence by age groups, the time interval from the beginning of the intestinal occlusion until hospitalization, the incidence of colon neoplasmama in the various segments of the large bowel, the evolution stage of the obstructive cancer of the colon (according to Eukes), the duration of the treatment before surgery and the importance of this treatment in view of the intervention to be performed, the type of interventions depending on the general and the local conditions of the patients. It is stressed that cancer of the colon leading to obstruction has a severe prognosis, the postoperative death rate being of 19,75%. The therapeutic attitude was based on a well-directed strategy, in which the elements of the pre-, intra- and postoperative treatment were of particular importance in view of the continuous improvement of the prognosis of this affection. The percentage of colon resections with extirpation of the tumour was 50,6, while radical colic resection was performed in only 28,40% of the patients.