Clinical outcomes of laparoscopic surgery for transverse and descending colon cancers in a community setting.

Introduction The feasibility, safety and oncological outcomes of laparoscopic surgery for transverse and descending colon cancers in a community hospital setting were evaluated. Methods Twenty-six patients with transverse or descending colon cancers who underwent laparoscopic surgery at our hospital were included in this retrospective analysis (group A). Their outcomes were compared with those of 71 patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery for colon cancer at other tumor sites (group B). Results There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of operative time, estimated blood loss, postoperative hospital stay and morbidity rate. Extended lymphadenectomy was performed more frequently and the number of harvested lymph nodes was significantly higher in group B than in group A. However, no recurrence developed in group A, while recurrence occurred in four patients from group B. The 3-year disease-free survival rates were 100% for group A and 93.5% for group B. The 3-year overall survival rates were 100% for group A and 91.6% for group B. Conclusions Laparoscopic surgery for transverse and descending colon cancers can be performed safely with oncological validity in a community hospital setting, provided there is careful selection of the patients and adequate lymphadenectomy considering the clinical stage of their disease.