Antiperistaltic Transverse Coloplasty: A Salvage Procedure in Extensive Bowel and Colorectal Resections to Avoid Intestinal Failure.

INTRODUCTION: After extensive small and colon resections, quality of life can be affected. We propose the antiperistaltic transverse coloplasty as a solution that allows for preservation of the transverse colon after both right and left colectomies while achieving a tension-free colorectal anastomosis slowing the transit and increasing the absorption time, resulting in better stool consistency and quality of life compared with an ileorectal anastomosis. METHODS: This technique was performed in a 41-year-old woman with Goblet cell adenocarcinoma of the appendix with peritoneal metastasis. The transverse colon is rotated anticlockwise over the axis of the middle colic vessels toward the left parietocolic flank and relocated to the usual position of the descending colon. RESULTS: After 1 year of follow-up, the patient led a normal life without parenteral nutrition with five bowel movements per day and a weight gain of 15%. CONCLUSIONS: The use of an antiperistaltic transverse coloplasty may be worthwhile to perform in cases of extensive bowel resections during cytoreductive surgery leading to short-bowel syndrome to avoid a permanent stoma or intestinal failure and improve patient outcomes.

Insights behind the Relationship between Colorectal Cancer and Obesity: Is Visceral Adipose Tissue the Missing Link?

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major health problem worldwide, with an estimated 1.9 million new cases and 915,880 deaths in 2020 alone. The etiology of CRC is complex and involves both genetic and lifestyle factors. Obesity is a major risk factor for CRC, and the mechanisms underlying this link are still unclear. However, the generalized inflammatory state of adipose tissue in obesity is thought to play a role in the association between CRC risk and development. Visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is a major source of proinflammatory cytokines and other factors that contribute to the characteristic systemic low-grade inflammation associated with obesity. VAT is also closely associated with the tumor microenvironment (TME), and recent evidence suggests that adipocytes within the TME undergo phenotypic changes that contribute to tumor progression. In this review, we aim to summarize the current evidence linking obesity and CRC, with a focus on the role of VAT in tumor etiology and progression.

A review of the diagnosis and management of liver hydatid cyst.

Hydatidosis is a zoonosis caused by Echinococcus in the larval stage. Humans are accidental intermediary hosts where cystic lesions develop, primarily in the liver and the lungs. It is usually asymptomatic, hence it often represents an incidental finding. Symptoms result from cyst expansion and/or host inflammatory reaction. Hepatomegaly is the most common sign. Hydatidosis induces no specific changes in lab tests but immunodiagnostics are available that may complement its study, with antibody detection being the modality of choice. While ultrasound is the main diagnostic technique, tomography offers more accurate information regarding both characteristics and anatomical relations. A number of therapy options are presently available. Treatment with albendazole, whether combined or not with praziquantel, is useful for smaller, uncomplicated cysts (< 5 cm). Only 30 % of cysts disappear with medical treatment alone. Surgery is indicated for bigger liver cysts (> 10 cm), and cysts at risk of rupture and/or complicated cysts. The laparoscopic approach is scarcely widespread. The radical technique (total cystopericystectomy) is preferable because of its lower risk for postoperative abdominal infection, biliary fistula, and overall morbidity. Conservative techniques are appropriate in endemic areas where surgery is performed by nonspecialist surgeons. PAIR (puncture-aspiration-injection-reaspiration) is an innovative technique representing an alternative to surgery. It is indicated for inoperable cases and/or patients who reject surgery, for recurrence after surgery, and for lack of response to medical treatment. Active surveillance without treatment may be indicated for quiescent or inactive, uncomplicated liver cysts.

Anal intraepithelial neoplasia screening in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection.

INTRODUCTION: the incidence of anal cancer has increased in recent years, making screening and early detection of anal intraepithelial neoplasia (AIN) a necessity in patients at risk. METHODS: a descriptive observational study of homosexual patients (MSM) or women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) III, with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, included in an AIN detection screening program was carried out between March 2016 and September 2019. RESULTS: we have performed 695 anal smears, 156 with results of LSIL (low-grade lesion) or HSIL (high-grade lesion) (22.4 %), and 116 high resolution anoscopy (HRA), 75.3 % of patients with altered cytology. We have 403 biopsies, being 84 % pathological, 197 biopsies of AIN I (49 %), 96 of AIN II and III (24 %), 44 condylomas (11 %) and the rest (16 %), normal mucosa. CONCLUSION: the high prevalence of premalignant lesions and the improvement in the staging of lesions after treatment recommend this protocol.

Diaphragmatic Peritonectomy and Full-Thickness Resection in CRS/HIPEC May Allow Higher Completeness of Cytoreduction Rates with a Low Rate of Respiratory Complications.

BACKGROUND: Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) provides a survival benefit when achieved without residual disease. As diaphragm is frequently affected in peritoneal malignancies, complete cytoreduction often requires surgical techniques over the diaphragm. The purpose of the study was to assess diaphragmatic resection impact on cytoreduction completeness, morbidity and mortality compared to less aggressive diaphragmatic peritonectomy in CRS and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) settings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis and supramesocolic disease undergoing CRS/HIPEC from 2011 to 2019 were included in a prospectively collected database. We compared patients who underwent full-thickness diaphragmatic resection (DR) and diaphragmatic peritonectomy (DP). Epidemiological and clinical data, morbidity, and mortality within 90 days of surgery were documented. RESULTS: 232 patients were initially selected. Inclusion criteria were met by 88 procedures. DR was performed on 32 patients and DP on 56. Number of resected organs was 5.21 in the DR cohort vs. 3.57 in the DP cohort (p<0.0001). Rate of Peritoneal Cancer Index (PCI) score >14 was higher in the DR group (75%) than in the DP group (50.9%) (p=0.027). Tumor invasion of diaphragmatic muscle after DR was confirmed in 89.3% patients. Postoperative pleural effusion was observed in 28 patients (50%) in the DP group and in 17 (53.1%) in the DR group. CONCLUSIONS: CRS/HIPEC requires specific surgical techniques over the diaphragm to achieve complete cytoreduction. As diaphragmatic muscle invasion is frequent, full-thickness resection may allow a cytoreduction completeness increase without an increased morbidity. Pleural drains are not systematically required as these procedures show low incidence of major respiratory complications.

Organoids: An Emerging Tool to Study Aging Signature across Human Tissues. Modeling Aging with Patient-Derived Organoids.

The biology of aging is focused on the identification of novel pathways that regulate the underlying processes of aging to develop interventions aimed at delaying the onset and progression of chronic diseases to extend lifespan. However, the research on the aging field has been conducted mainly in animal models, yeast, Caenorhabditis elegans, and cell cultures. Thus, it is unclear to what extent this knowledge is transferable to humans since they might not reflect the complexity of aging in people. An organoid culture is an in vitro 3D cell-culture technology that reproduces the physiological and cellular composition of the tissues and/or organs. This technology is being used in the cancer field to predict the response of a patient-derived tumor to a certain drug or treatment serving as patient stratification and drug-guidance approaches. Modeling aging with patient-derived organoids has a tremendous potential as a preclinical model tool to discover new biomarkers of aging, to predict adverse outcomes during aging, and to design personalized approaches for the prevention and treatment of aging-related diseases and geriatric syndromes. This could represent a novel approach to study chronological and/or biological aging, paving the way to personalized interventions targeting the biology of aging.

Abdominal metastatic melanoma invading the transverse colon and stomach.

Gastrointestinal melanoma metastases are not uncommon, with the jejunum and ileum being the most common locations (58 %), followed by the stomach (26 %), colon (22 %), duodenum (12 %), and rectum (5 %).

Secondary surgical cytoreduction needs to be assessed taking into account surgical technique, completeness of cytoreduction, and extent of disease.

Recent evidence suggested that secondary surgical cytoreduction followed by chemotherapy does not result in longer overall survival in patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer.This statement is based on a phase III multicenter, randomized clinical trial that lacks a description of the surgical protocol, the surgical technique, and the surgical variables. In a study that evaluates surgical cytoreduction, it is mandatory to assess the grade of cytoreductive surgery achieved (Sugarbaker PH, Langenbeck's Arch Surg 384:576-87, 1999), the extent of disease using PCI (Peritoneal Cancer Index), the technique itself, and the existence of a multidisciplinary approach with extensive upper abdominal procedures in experienced centers (Ren et al, BMC Cancer 15:1-12, 2015). There is evidence proving that the quality of cytoreduction (Al Rawahi et al, Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2013, 2013), the measurement of the amount of disease by PCI (Elzarkaa et al, J Gynecol Oncol 29, 2018), and a multidisciplinary approach with supramesocolic procedures (Ren et al, BMC Cancer 15:1-12, 2015) impact overall survival.This study fails to compare chemotherapy with secondary cytoreductive surgery since, due to the lack of variables, we can assess neither the performed surgery nor its criteria. This study should not be taken into account to recommend chemotherapy alone over a surgical approach in this group of patients.

Prophylactic HIPEC with oxaliplatin might be of benefit in T4 and perforated colon cancer: another possible interpretation of the COLOPEC results.

The COLOPEC trial failed to show evidence for improved relapse-free survival (RFS) between the two study groups: 80,9% (95% CI 73.3-88.5) in the experimental group and 76.2 % (68.0-84.4) in the control group (one-sided log-rank p = 0.28). Nevertheless only 87 patients received the adjuvant HIPEC treatment in the experimental arm (n = 100). This group had a peritoneal relapse of 19 %, but only 10 % had a truly peritoneal relapse as 9 of them had stablished peritoneal carcinomatosis and 1 case was a peritoneal recurrence but did not receive adjuvant HIPEC. We conducted a per-protocol analysis comparing the 87 patients which truly received the adjuvant HIPEC to the 102 patients in the control arm and obtained an OR 0.396 (95 % CI 0.17-0.91) with a (Pearson Chi-Square p = 0.026, two-tailed Fisher exact test p = 0.032). This contradicts the COLOPEC reported conclusions and shows that adjuvant HIPEC could have an important protective role against peritoneal recurrence.

LABEL procedure: Laser-Assisted Bile duct Exploration by Laparoendoscopy for choledocholithiasis: improving surgical outcomes and reducing technical failure.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic bile duct exploration (LBDE) is recommended in current treatment guidelines for the management of choledocholithiasis with gallbladder in situ. Failure of this technique is common as a consequence of large or impacted common bile duct (CBD) stones. In this series, we present our experience in using holmium laser lithotripsy as an adjunct to LBDE for the treatment of choledocholithiasis. METHODS: Between 2014 and 2016, eighteen laparoscopic bile duct explorations utilising holmium laser lithotripsy were performed after failure of standard retrieval techniques. RESULTS: Choledocholithiasis was successfully treated in 18 patients using laparoscopic holmium laser lithotripsy (transcystically in 14 patients). There was one failure where a CBD stricture prevented the scope reaching the stone. Two medical complications were recorded (Clavien-Dindo I and II). There were no mortalities or re-interventions. CONCLUSIONS: LABEL technique is a successful and safe method to enhance LBDE in cases of impacted or large stones. In our experience, this approach increases the feasibility of the transcystic stone retrieval and may reduce overall operative time.

From utopia to reality: increased survival in peritoneal carcinomatosis treated with cytoreduction and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy.

We have read with great interest the article by Illán et al.1 entitled "Long survival in a patient with metastatic colorectal carcinoma: reality or utopia?" This article describes the case of a 42 year old patient with mucinous-type colon adenocarcinoma who had tumor recurrence with peritoneal metastases 18 months after resection of the primary tumor and adjuvant chemotherapy. After multiple metastasectomies and several lines of chemotherapy, the patient died 27 months after the recurrence.

Dorsal inflammatory mass secondary to lost stones after laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

The most frequent intraabdominal complication after lost stones are abscesses, which account for 65% of complications. The main risk factors are: old age, male gender, surgical difficulty, leakage of lithiasis of more than 1.5 cm or more than 15 stones, perihepatic location and pigmented gallstones. We report the case of a 73-year-old man with a medical history of hypertension, diabetes, chronic kidney failure and laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Influence of simultaneous liver and peritoneal resection on postoperative morbi-mortality and survival in patients with colon cancer treated with surgical cytoreduction and intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy. / Influencia de la resección hepática y peritoneal simultánea, en la morbimortalidad y supervivencia de los pacientes con cáncer de colon intervenidos mediante cirugía citorreductora con quimioterapia intraperitoneal hipertérmica.

INTRODUCTION: Cytoreductive surgery plus intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy (HIPEC) has recently been established as the treatment of choice for selected patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis of colonic origin. Until recently, the simultaneous presence of peritoneal and hepatic dissemination has been considered a contraindication for surgery. The aim of this paper is to analyze the morbidity, mortality and survival of patients with simultaneous peritoneal and hepatic resection with HIPEC for peritoneal carcinomatosis secondary to colon cancer. METHODS: Between January 2010 and January 2015, 61 patients were operated on, 16 had simultaneous peritoneal and hepatic dissemination (group RH+), and 45 presented only peritoneal dissemination (group RH-). RESULTS: There were no differences between the groups in terms of demographic data, length of surgery and extension of peritoneal disease. Postoperative grade III-V complications were significantly higher in the RH+ group (56.3 vs. 26.6%; P=.032). For the whole group, mortality rate was 3.2% (two patients in group RH-, and none in group RH+). Patients with liver resection had a longer postoperative stay (14.4 vs. 23.1 days) (P=.027). Median overall survival was 33 months for RH-, and 36 for RH+ group. Median disease-free survival was 16 months for RH-, and 24 months for RH+ group. CONCLUSIONS: Simultaneous peritoneal cytoreduction and hepatic resection resulted in a significantly higher Clavien grade III-V morbidity and a longer hospital stay, although the results are similar to other major abdominal interventions. The application of multimodal oncological and surgical treatment may obtain similar long-term survival results in both groups.

Small bowel obstruction due to laparoscopic barbed sutures: an unknown complication?

BACKGROUND: In recent years there has been an increasing uptake in the use of barbed sutures, particularly in minimally invasive and laparoscopic procedures where they may reduce operating time and improve surgical efficiency. However, little is known about the adverse events associated with these new materials and concerns have arisen regarding their safety in certain procedures. METHODS: We performed a search of electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Database). We reveal up to 15 cases of small bowel obstruction (SBO) complicating laparoscopic pelvic surgery that have been reported to date adding two cases of SBO in our own practice following the use of barbed sutures in laparoscopic operations, both requiring surgical re-intervention in the early post-operative period. RESULTS: Fifteen similar cases of small bowel obstruction were identified, all of which occurred in patients undergoing surgery below the transverse colon . Surgical re-intervention was required in all cases although 60% of these were performed laparoscopically. CONCLUSIONS: These cases highlight that although barbed sutures provide an attractive means to allow easier and faster laparoscopic suturing, they should be used carefully in inframesocolic surgery and the suture end cut and buried to avoid inadvertent attachment to the small bowel or its mesentery. Barbed suture entanglement should be considered as an uncommon yet potentially serious differential cause for SBO presenting in the early period after laparoscopic surgery where a barbed suture has been used.

Standardizing Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy in Ovarian Cancer Treatment: Navigating Complexities and Charting the Path Forward.

The incorporation of hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) into the treatment landscape for ovarian cancer has invoked a spectrum of emotions, ranging from enthusiastic anticipation to cautious skepticism [...].

The Role of Systematic Lymphadenectomy in Low-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the role of systematic lymphadenectomy in low-grade serous ovarian cancer (LGSOC) and determine its impact on clinical outcomes in overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) terms. METHODS: A comprehensive, systematic computer literature search on PubMed was performed using the following Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms: "low grade serous ovarian cancer" AND/OR "lymphadenectomy" AND/OR "staging" AND/OR "ovarian cancer" AND/OR "cytoreduction". Separate searches were performed with MeSH terms on MEDLINE and EMBASE to extract all the relevant literature available. We included only patients with histologically confirmed LGSOC. RESULTS: Three studies were considered in the quantitative analysis. Systematic lymphadenectomy in LGSOC failed to provide a significant OS or PFS benefit in LGSOC when compared to no lymphadenectomy in the entire (all the stages) population (for OS: HR = 1.15, 95% CI [0.42, 3.18] I2 = 84% and for PFS: HR = 1.46, 95% CI [0.63, 3.41], I2 = 71%), nor did it in the subtype analysis regarding FIGO stages. For FIGO early-stage I-II LGSOC, the DFS data were pooled (HR = 1.48, 95% CI [0.58, 3.78], I2 = 75%). In patients with advanced-stage (FIGO II-IV), we also failed to prove survival benefit for lymphadenectomy in OS (HR = 1.74, 95% CI [0.87, 3.48], I2 = 11%) or DFS (HR = 1.48, 95% CI [0.58, 3.78], I2 = 75%) compared to no lymphadenectomy. CONCLUSION: More extensive prospective research is mandatory to understand the real impact of lymphadenectomy on survival in LGSOC. The existing literature does not provide strong evidence.