COMPASS: deCOMPressing stomA and two-Stage elective resection vs. emergency reSection in patients with left-sided obstructive colon cancer.

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer stands as a prevalent cause of cancer-related mortality, necessitating effective treatment strategies. Acute colonic obstruction occurs in approximately 20% of patients and represents a surgical emergency with substantial morbidity and mortality. The optimal approach for managing left-sided colon cancer with acute colonic obstruction remains debatable, with no consensus on whether emergency resection or bridge-to-surgery, involving initial decompressing stoma and subsequent elective resection after recovery, should be employed. Current studies show a decrease in morbidity and short-term mortality for the bridge-to-surgery approach, yet it remains unclear if the long-term oncological outcome is equivalent to emergency resection. METHODS: This prospective, randomized, multicenter trial aims to investigate the management of obstructive left-sided colon cancer in a comprehensive manner. The study will be conducted across 26 university hospitals and 40 academic hospitals in Germany. A total of 468 patients will be enrolled, providing a cohort of 420 evaluable patients, with an equal distribution of 210 patients in each treatment arm. Patients with left-sided colon cancer, defined as cancer between the left splenic flexure and > 12 cm ab ano and obstruction confirmed by X-ray or CT scan, are eligible. Randomization will be performed in a 1:1 ratio, assigning patients either to the oncological emergency resection group or the bridge-to-surgery group, wherein patients will undergo diverting stoma and subsequent elective oncological resection after recovery. The primary endpoint of this trial will be 120-day mortality, allowing for consideration of the time interval between diverting stoma and resection. DISCUSSION: The findings derived from this trial possess the potential to reshape the current clinical approach of emergency resection for obstructive left-sided colon cancer by favoring the bridge-to-surgery practice, provided that a reduction in morbidity can be achieved without compromising the oncological long-term outcome. TRIAL REGISTRATION: German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS) under the identifier DRKS00031827. Registered on May 15, 2023. PROTOCOL: 28.04.2023, protocol version 2.0F.

Label-free multiphoton microscopy enables histopathological assessment of colorectal liver metastases and supports automated classification of neoplastic tissue.

As the state of resection margins is an important prognostic factor after extirpation of colorectal liver metastases, surgeons aim to obtain negative margins, sometimes elaborated by resections of the positive resection plane after intraoperative frozen sections. However, this is time consuming and results sometimes remain unclear during surgery. Label-free multimodal multiphoton microscopy (MPM) is an optical technique that retrieves morpho-chemical information avoiding all staining and that can potentially be performed in real-time. Here, we investigated colorectal liver metastases and hepatic tissue using a combination of three endogenous nonlinear signals, namely: coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) to visualize lipids, two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) to visualize cellular patterns, and second harmonic generation (SHG) to visualize collagen fibers. We acquired and analyzed over forty thousand MPM images of metastatic and normal liver tissue of 106 patients. The morphological information with biochemical specificity produced by MPM allowed discriminating normal liver from metastatic tissue and discerning the tumor borders on cryosections as well as formalin-fixed bulk tissue. Furthermore, automated tissue type classification with a correct rate close to 95% was possible using a simple approach based on discriminant analysis of texture parameters. Therefore, MPM has the potential to increase the precision of resection margins in hepatic surgery of metastases without prolonging surgical intervention.

Robotic-assisted minimally invasive Ivor Lewis esophagectomy within the prospective multicenter German da Vinci Xi registry trial.

PURPOSE: Robotic-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) has become one standard approach for the operative treatment of esophageal tumors at specialized centers. Here, we report the results of a prospective multicenter registry for standardized RAMIE. METHODS: The German da Vinci Xi registry trial included all consecutive patients who underwent RAMIE at five tertiary university centers between Oct 17, 2017, and Jun 5, 2020. RAMIE was performed according to a standard technique using an intrathoracic circular stapled esophagogastrostomy. RESULTS: A total of 220 patients were included. The median age was 64 years. Total minimally invasive RAMIE was accomplished in 85.9%; hybrid resection with robotic-assisted thoracic approach was accomplished in an additional 11.4%. A circular stapler size of ≥28 mm was used in 84%, and the median blood loss and operative time were 200 (IQR: 80-400) ml and 425 (IQR: 335-527) min, respectively. The rate of anastomotic leakage was 13.2% (n=29), whereas the two centers with >70 cases each had rates of 7.0% and 12.0%. Pneumonia occurred in 19.5% of patients, and the 90-day mortality was 3.6%. Cumulative sum analysis of the operative time indicated the end of the learning curve after 22 cases. CONCLUSIONS: High-quality multicenter registry data confirm that RAMIE is a safe procedure and can be reproduced with acceptable leak rates in a multicenter setting. The learning curve is comparably low for experienced robotic surgeons.

Use and Perception of Digital Health Technologies by Surgical Patients in Germany in the Pre-COVID-19 Era: Survey Study.

BACKGROUND: This survey study investigates surgical patients' use and perception of digital health technologies in Germany in the pre-COVID-19 era. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to relate surgical patients' characteristics to the use and perception of several digital health technologies. METHODS: In this single-center, cross-sectional survey study in the outpatient department of a university hospital in Germany, 406 patients completed a questionnaire with the following three domains: general information and use of the internet, smartphones, and general digital health aspects. Analyses were stratified by age group and highest education level achieved. RESULTS: We found significant age-based differences in most of the evaluated aspects. Younger patients were more open to using new technologies in private and medical settings but had more security concerns. Although searching for information on illnesses on the web was common, the overall acceptance of and trust in web-based consultations were rather low, with <50% of patients in each age group reporting acceptance and trust. More people with academic qualifications than without academic qualifications searched for information on the web before visiting physicians (73/121, 60.3% and 100/240, 41.7%, respectively). Patients with academic degrees were also more engaged in health-related information and communication technology use. CONCLUSIONS: These results support the need for eHealth literacy, health literacy, and available digital devices and internet access to support the active, meaningful use of information and communication technologies in health care. Uncertainties and a lack of knowledge exist, especially regarding telemedicine and the use of medical and health apps. This is especially pronounced among older patients and patients with a low education status.

The Effect of the Frequently Used Cinacalcet for pHPT during the COVID-19 Pandemic on Perioperative Decrease in Parathyroid Hormone.

Background: Cinacalcet is a calcimimetic drug that has increasingly been used as a bridging therapy for primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT), especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of our study was to investigate if preoperative cinacalcet therapy affects intraoperative parathyroid hormone (IOPTH) monitoring during parathyroidectomy, which is an important indicator for the success of surgery. Methods: In this single-center retrospective analysis, we studied the outcomes of 72 patients who underwent surgery for pHPT. We evaluated two groups: those with cinacalcet therapy before operation­the cinacalcet group (CG)­and those without medical therapy preoperatively (non-CG). In order to perform a between-group comparison of time trends, we fit a linear mixed-effects model with PTH as the response variable and predictors PTH levels preoperatively, group (cinacalcet yes/no), time, the group-by-time interaction, and a random intercept (per subject). Results: Our cohort included 51 (71%) women and 21 (29%) men, who were operated upon for pHPT in the period from January 2018 until August 2021. All patients were diagnosed with pHPT and 54% of the cohort were symptomatic for hypercalcemia. Moreover, 30% of the patients were treated with cinacalcet as a bridging therapy preoperatively, and this increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, as 64% of this group were treated in the last two years. Calcium values were significantly different before (p < 0.001) and after (p = 0.0089) surgery, but calcium level change did not differ significantly between the CG and non-CG. Parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels dropped significantly in both groups during 10 min IOPTH monitoring (p < 0.001), but there was no significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.212). Conclusions: In the examined patient cohort, the use of cinacalcet did not affect the value of IOPTH monitoring during surgery for pHPT.

Pancreatoduodenectomy with or without prophylactic falciform ligament wrap around the hepatic artery for prevention of postpancreatectomy haemorrhage: randomized clinical trial (PANDA trial).

BACKGROUND: Postpancreatectomy haemorrhage (PPH) is a rare but potentially fatal complication after pancreatoduodenectomy. Preventive strategies are lacking with scarce data for support. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a prophylactic falciform ligament wrap around the hepatic and gastroduodenal artery can prevent PPH from these vessels. METHODS: In a randomized, controlled, multicentre trial, patients who were scheduled for elective open partial pancreatoduodenectomy with pancreatojejunostomy between 5 November 2015 and 2 April 2020 were randomly allocated in a 1 : 1 ratio to undergo pancreatoduodenectomy with (intervention) or without (control) a falciform ligament wrap around the hepatic artery. The primary endpoint was the rate of clinically relevant PPH from the hepatic artery or gastroduodenal artery stump within 3 months after pancreatoduodenectomy. Secondary endpoints were the rates of associated postoperative complications, for example postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) and PPH. RESULTS: Altogether, 445 patients were randomized with 222 and 223 in each group. Among the patients included in modified intention-to-treat analysis (207 in the intervention group and 210 in the control group), the primary endpoint was observed in six of 207 in the intervention group compared with 15 of 210 in the control group (2.9 versus 7.1 per cent respectively; odds ratio 0.39 (95 per cent c.i. 0.15 to 1.02); P = 0.071). Per protocol analysis showed a significant reduction in the intervention group (odds ratio 0.26 (95 per cent c.i. 0.09 to 0.80); P = 0.017). A soft pancreas texture (43 per cent) and the rate of a clinically relevant POPF were evenly (20 per cent) distributed between the groups. The rate of any clinically relevant PPH including the primary endpoint and other bleeding sites was not significantly different between intervention and control groups (9.7 versus 14.8 per cent respectively). CONCLUSION: A falciform ligament wrap may reduce PPH from the hepatic artery or gastroduodenal artery stump and should be considered during pancreatoduodenectomy. REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02588066 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov).