[Laparoscopic resection of colorectal malignancy--an oncological risk?]

Oncological risks associated with laparoscopic colorectal surgery in curative intention include inadequate radicality, seeding of tumour cells through unprotected recovery of the surgical specimen, faulty surgical technique, and failure to observe the technical and/or oncological limitations applicable to certain tumour sites. Results of laparoscopic colorectal surgery may be defined by pathohistologic findings (number of removed lymph nodes, count of tumor tears, clearance of margins) and long-term results (port-site metastases, local recurrence rate, number of distnant metastase, 5-year-survival). Current published results and first data from the Multicenter Study Group will be compared with the data of open surgery. Merely a few reports on the number of lymph nodes removed during such operations have been published. First data of the Multicenter Study Group Laparoscopis Colorectal Surgery seem to report comparable data to open surgery. There are no certain data the occurrence rate of portsite metastases as on long-term results, local recurrence rates and the 5-year-survival. So the sense and the quality of laparoscopic colorectal surgery in curative intention can't be judged nowadays. The many potential mistakes and hazards of oncological laparoscopic surgery make it mandatory that such interventions should be done only within the framework of prospective clinical studies covering limited indications.