[Open vacuum-pack abdomen. An ideal technique for deferred temporary abdominal closure in complications after cytoreduction surgery and intraperitoneal chemotherapy with hyperthermia due to peritoneal cancer]. / Open vacuum-pack, técnica ideal del cierre abdominal temporal diferido en las complicaciones tras cirugía citorreductora y quimioterapia intraperitoneal con hipertermia por carcinomatosis peritoneal.

INTRODUCTION: The use of a new therapeutic alternative involving cytoreductive surgery with perioperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy in the treatment of patients suffering from peritoneal carcinomatosis represents a new challenge for the multidisciplinary teams caring for these patients. Their post-operative progress and care needs, apart from differing from those of conventional patients, have not yet been completely defined or protocolised. In this presentation we explain the special characteristics of these patients compared to the usual surgical patients, the possible physiopathological mechanisms which may give rise to the different types of complications, the circumstances when a temporary abdominal closure is necessary, the ideal conditions required for an optimal technique, and finally our experience with the open vacuum abdomen technique in the treatment of the complications that appear in patients treated by this new triple combined therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Based on our personal experience in the treatment of 110 cytoreductions carried out between February 1997 and February 2007 on 71 patients suffering from peritoneal carcinomatosis of various origins. Of the 71 patients, 50 (70%) suffered some kind of complication during their postoperative evolution, 28 of them requiring re-operation for a Grade III-IV postoperative complication. The abdominal situation made a temporary closure desirable in 17 patients, having applied an open vacuum abdomen technique on every occasion. We study this group of patients according their original type of tumour and stage of the disease at the cytoreductive procedure, peritonectomies and visceral resections required, type of postoperative complications, treatment applied and evolution. RESULTS: A total of 52 open vacuum abdomen procedures were required (median, 2.8 per patient; range, 1-10) before the abdominal complication could be completely kept under control in these 17 patients. Only 2 postoperative intestinal fistulas were directly related to this technique, and a primary closure of the whole abdominal wall was possible in 11 of these patients (66%). All but one of them left the hospital alive and well. CONCLUSIONS: As a consequence of this experience, in our opinion, the open vacuum abdomen is the ideal election technique to be employed in any temporary closure of the abdominal cavity for whatever reason it is required, including the worst possible surgical scenario, as we have demonstrated in the treatment of surgical complications after cytoreductive procedures and intraperitoneal chemohyperthermia.

[Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. Our experienced with triple combined therapy: cytoreduction, intraperitoneal perioperative chemotherapy and hyperthermia]. / Mesotelioma peritoneal maligno. Nuestra experiencia con la triple terapia combinada: citorreducción, quimioterapia intraperitoneal perioperatoria e hipertermia.

INTRODUCTION: Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma is the most common primary neoplasm of the serous peritoneum. Most patients die of the complications of local disease confined to the peritoneal cavity, while nodal or distant dissemination is extremely rare. Prognosis with traditional therapeutic options is dismal, with a median survival of between 4 and 12 months from diagnosis. The application of a new combined therapy with cytoreductive surgery, intraperitoneal perioperative chemotherapy and heated intraperitoneal intraoperative chemotherapy, followed by early postoperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy is currently providing good results, in some instances even allowing curative intent. We present a series of patients treated with this triple combined therapy. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Between December 1998 and December 2005, 78 cytoreductive surgeries were performed in 50 patients in our peritoneal carcinomatosis program at the San Jose Policlinic in Vitoria (Spain), for distinct reasons. Among these patients, surgery was performed on 11 occasions in seven patients with a diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. The present study focuses on this latter group of seven patients. RESULTS: Eleven cytoreductions were performed in seven patients with diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. There were four men and three women, with a mean age of 50 years (range 31-57 years). None of the patients had a history of occupational exposure to asbestos or contact with this substance. All the patients had received more than one surgical intervention before entering our program. Only two patients had also received systemic chemotherapy as adjuvant treatment after their initial diagnosis, as the only possible therapeutic alternative. Treatment with curative intent was provided, obtaining complete cytoreduction of macroscopic disease in all patients, followed by application of intraperitoneal perioperative chemotherapy for the treatment of any residual microscopic disease. Pathologic analysis showed biphasic sarcomatous mesothelioma in two patients and epithelial mesothelioma in the remaining five patients. Postoperative complications occurred in five patients, resulting in a mean length of postoperative hospital stay of 41.5 days (range 17-84 days). Three patients died from disease progression at 3, 9 and 11 months after the initial cytoreduction; of these, two patients had diffuse biphasic sarcomatous mesothelioma. The remaining four patients are still alive at 5, 9, 19 and 54 months after the initial cytoreduction without evidence of disease at the present time. CONCLUSIONS: Radical oncologic cytoreductive surgery combined with intraperitoneal perioperative chemotherapy provides good results with prolonged survival in selected cases, although morbidity is high. Based in our experience, biphasic sarcomatous mesotheliomas should be excluded from this protocol because of their aggressiveness; these tumors should be included only in conventional therapeutic strategies with palliative intent.

[Principles of the treatment of peritoneal carcinomatosis due to colorectal cancer. Current review and update]. / Bases y fundamentos del tratamiento de la carcinomatosis peritoneal por cáncer colorrectal. Revisión actual y puesta al día.

Colorectal cancer is the most frequent digestive tumor. The incidence of abdominal dissemination is high and all studies of the natural history of colorectal carcinomatosis demonstrate that prognosis in these patients is poor, with a mean survival of between 5 and 9 months. Furthermore, the results of systemic adjuvant treatment are disappointing, with a maximum survival of 18 months. Consequently, other treatment strategies need to be studied and developed. We present a review of the principles that underlie Sugarbakers treatment protocol, which includes maximal cytoreductive surgery for the treatment of macroscopic disease through peritonectomy together with perioperative intraperitoneal intensification chemotherapy for residual microscopic disease. We present all the phase II studies with more than 10 treated patients published in the medical literature by the main groups working in this line of treatment, together with the only phase III study published to date. With this new therapeutic alternative, the mean overall survival at 2 and 5 years is 40% and 20% respectively. Based on these results, this new therapeutic approach is recommended as the treatment of choice in these unfortunate patients. The limits of the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer are also discussed.