Safety and feasibility of laparoscopic multivisceral resection for surgical T4b colon cancers: Retrospective analyses

Introduction: Laparoscopic (Lap) surgery has not been established as a standard procedure for locally advanced colon cancers. Here, we evaluated the safety and feasibility of Lap multivisceral resection (MVR) for tumors that had invaded adjacent organs (T4b). Methods: We performed retrospective analyses using a single institutional database. Eighty-four patients who underwent Lap or open MVR for surgical T4b primary colon cancers satisfied the inclusion criteria. Results: Among the 84 patients, 48 underwent LapMVR and 36 underwent open MVR. More patients in the open group were clinical T4b and were receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Patients in the open group had worse performance status (P = 0.037) and tumors of greater diameter. Lap completion was achieved in 42 cases (87.5%); the conversion rate was highest in cases involving the urinary tract (40.0%). Lap reconstruction of the bladder or ureter was extremely challenging, and therefore, adjacent organ reconstruction influenced Lap completion. Regarding perioperative outcomes, Lap was superior to open surgery in terms of intraoperative blood loss, morbidity, and postoperative hospital stay. Conversion was required in six cases; five were strategic conversions, and conversion was not associated with severe morbidity. The microscopic positive surgical margin rate was not higher in the Lap group than in the open group. Kaplan-Meier analyses of overall and disease-free survival were comparable between the groups. Cox regression analyses revealed that the operative approach did not have a significant adverse effect on long-term outcomes. Conclusion: The Lap approach could be considered for surgical T4b cancers, except for urinary tract invasion cases that require complicated reconstruction.