The surgical management of the radiation-injured intestine

The grim prognosis for patients with severe radiation injury of the intestine need not be considered unalterable. Aggressive, wide-resectional techniques, new nutritional methods, and earlier diagnosis should provide significantly improved results. Reshaping of traditional conservative attitudes, which have been associated with mortality ranging from 20 to 50 per cent, is strongly encouraged. A selectively bolder approach to the intestine injured by radiation is endorsed as a means of reducing the mortality and morbidity and of providing a greater opportunity for preserving or reconstituting acceptable gastrointestinal function.