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Laparoscopy and colon cancer. Is the port site at risk? A preliminary report
J M Ramos1, S Gupta, G J Anthone
1Department of Surgery, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Purpose:
To quantify the magnitude of the risk for port/extraction site recurrence of laparoscopically resected colon cancer in a defined study population.
Methods:
The data from a prospective laparoscopic bowel surgery registry was used to identify cases of colon cancer that were resected laparoscopically, with a minimum follow-up of 1 year. A questionnaire was sent to the surgeons who performed the procedures.
Results:
A total of 252 cases were identified from the registry. Questionnaires were returned in 208 of those cases, a response rate of 82.5%. Three cases of port or extraction site recurrence were noted, two of them associated with diffuse peritoneal carcinomatosis. All the patients had a Dukes' stage C tumor at the time of initial surgery.
Conclusions:
The incidence of port/extraction site recurrence following laparoscopic colon cancer surgery is low. All the recurrences were in patients with Dukes' stage C tumors, and there was diffuse peritoneal carcinomatosis in two of the three cases, suggesting that port/extraction site recurrence may be attributable to the advanced nature of the disease rather than the laparoscopic technique. Longer follow-up and more cases are required to confirm these findings.