Wide rectal duplication cyst in an adult resected by anterior approach: efficacy and recurrence.

Alimentary tract duplications are uncommon congenital abnormalities usually diagnosed and treated in childhood. Rectal involvement is extremely rare. We report the case of a 22-year-old female who presented with chronic abdominal and perianal pain; feeling of rectal fullness. Workup revealed a rectal duplication cyst. The patient underwent a complete transabdominal excision of the cyst: an hybrid laparoscopic and laparotomic technique was adopted. The hybrid isolated anterior abdominal approach is safe and feasible even for the treatment of wide rectal duplication cysts. Real recurrence in rectal duplication cysts is uncommon when the first operation was performed with radical intent.

Two-stage hepatectomy in two regional district community hospitals: perioperative safety and long-term survival.

INTRODUCTION: Surgical resection offers the best chance of cure for patients with colorectal liver metastases (CRLMs). Two-stage hepatectomy (TSH) has been demonstrated to be safe and effective to obtain curative resection in patients with multiple, bilobar CRLMs that are unresectable in a single procedure. Up to now TSH has been the prerogative of dedicated liver surgery centers. The aim of this study was to assess the safety and effectiveness of TSH also in community hospitals. METHODS: Of 294 patients operated on for CRLMs between September 1997 and June 2012 in 2 district community hospitals (belonging to the same regional healthcare district), 43 (14.6%) were scheduled for TSH. Thirty-eight/43 received neoadjuvant and/or bridge chemotherapy (2 neoadjuvant only, 4 neoadjuvant and bridge, 32 bridge only). RESULTS: The mean follow-up was 35.74 ± 29.53 months. Five-year overall survival (OS) was 31.4%, with a median survival time of 31 months. Twenty-nine patients completed the planned procedure (OS: 42.9%; median 47 months), while 14 did not because of disease progression (OS: 0%; median 13 months). No operative mortality occurred within the first 90 days either after the first or second stage. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest good efficacy and safety of TSH even when performed in a community hospital setting. Shifting patient selection from neoadjuvant to bridge chemotherapy had no impact on outcome once the clearing of the liver had been achieved. In patients presenting with synchronous CRLMs, simultaneous colorectal resection and clearing of the less involved hemiliver as the first surgical step is feasible without any negative impact on outcome.