Early Experience of Single-port Laparoscopic Anterior Resection for Colon Cancer

Hyung-jin Kim, MD, Sang-chul Lee, MD, Bong-hyung Kye, MD, In-kyu Lee, MD, Hyeon-min Cho, MD, Seong-taek Oh, MD, Jun-gi Kim, MD. Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea

Introduction: Single-port laparoscopic surgery (SPLS) has recently emerged as a method to improve cosmetic benefit of conventional laparoscopic surgery. Herein, we describe our experience with SPLS for anterior resection (AR). The results of a prospective series of single-port laparoscopic anterior resection procedures are presented.
Methods: From March 2009 and March 2010, sixteen patients were undergone anterior resections by a single-port laparoscopic technique. Surgical and oncologic outcomes were recorded in a prospective database.
Results: Sixteen unselected consecutive patients (eight males, eight females) aged 43–82 years (median, 66.5 years) underwent SPLS anterior resection. Operative time ranged from 150–415 min (median 242 min) and median wound incision length was 2.4 cm (range 1.5–4.0 cm). The median length of hospital stay was 7.5 days. Pathological reports from resected specimens showed adenocarcinoma in 15 patients and mucinous carcinoma in one. There was one case of anastomotic leak that required reoperation. There were no hospital death. The median number of harvested lymph nodes was 27.5 (range 10–56).
Conclusion: SPLS is a possible approach to anterior resection with potential for minimal access advantages. SPLS anterior resection is feasible and safe when performed by an experienced laparoscopic surgeon and team. However, the technique and oncologic safety warrants further experience and prospective randomized studies.
 

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