• Andre da Luz Moreira, Isabella Mor, Daniel P Geisler, Feza H Remzi, and Ravi P Kiran.
• Department of Colorectal Surgery, Digestive Disease Institute, Cleveland Clinic, A30, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA. andreluzmoreira@yahoo.com.br
• Surg Endosc. 2011 Jan 1; 25 (1): 278-83.

IntroductionThe field of laparoscopic rectal cancer surgery is expanding. We compare short-term and early oncological outcomes after laparoscopic versus open resection in carefully matched rectal cancer patients.MethodsAll consecutive patients undergoing elective laparoscopic resection for rectal cancer were reviewed. Laparoscopic resections were matched 1:1 to open resections by age, gender, American Society of Anesthesiologists class, body mass index, neoadjuvant chemoradiation, and type of surgery. Data were analyzed using Fisher's exact, chi-square, Wilcoxon rank-sum tests, and Kaplan-Meier estimates. P-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsNinety-one rectal cancer patients with laparoscopic resection were included, 59% were male, and median age was 62 years. Conversion rate was 18.7%. Laparoscopic and open surgery had similar 30-day morbidity and mortality except wound infection, which was lower for the laparoscopic group (p = 0.02). Laparoscopic surgery had similar 30-day readmissions but shorter total length of hospital stay (5 versus 7 days, p < 0.01), time to first flatus (3 versus 4.5 days, p = 0.001), and time to first bowel movement (4 versus 5 days, p = 0.05) when compared with open surgery. The 3-year disease-free survival, local recurrence, and distant recurrence rates were also similar between the two groups.ConclusionLaparoscopic surgery can be safely performed for rectal cancer, with better postoperative recovery and acceptable early oncological outcomes. Results from large ongoing randomized trials with longer follow-up time are pending to better define oncologic outcomes.

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