Study on the application of laparoscopy in radical colorectal cancer surgery

  As laparoscopic surgery is limited by instruments and surgical techniques, laparoscopic colon surgery should not only meet the requirements of open surgery, but also have the following conditions: no history of middle and lower abdominal surgery and other diseases causing extensive abdominal adhesions; for the size of the mass, the diameter should not be too large, generally speaking, it should not exceed 6cm. If the tumor has invaded the surrounding organs and is closely adherent to them, then laparoscopic surgery is not recommended. This procedure is also contraindicated in overly obese patients, as it will affect the exposure of the operative field and the dissection and separation of important structures (such as ureter, lower rectum, blood vessels and lymph nodes).  Laparoscopic colon surgery has many advantages and has become popular among patients: less trauma, less bleeding, faster recovery of gastrointestinal function, shorter hospital stay, and more time for follow-up treatment; less postoperative pain, no need for pain relief or reduced dosage of pain medication; cosmetic effects are also attractive to young female patients; the chance of complications such as postoperative bleeding, intestinal adhesions, and oropharyngeal infections is greatly reduced. Due to the magnification function of laparoscopy, the identification and protection of pelvic vegetative nerves are favorable, and the chances of urinary retention and sexual dysfunction after surgery are reduced or the symptoms are alleviated; the judgment of the lax tissue gap between the layers of the pelvic fascia visceral wall and the choice of access are more accurate, and the 30°C angle of the laparoscope is fully utilized, so the instruments can easily enter the narrow pelvic floor and meet the anatomical requirements of sharp TME; due to the use of ultrasound knife, Ligasure, etc., it has good hemostatic function while separating tissues, solving the problem of bleeding and blurring of visual field, making the whole operation bleed very little without blood transfusion and avoiding many complications that may be caused by blood transfusion. These advantages are incomparable to those of traditional surgery. Of course, laparoscopic surgery also has its shortcomings: because the operator cannot directly touch and probe the abdominal cavity, it is difficult to detect the tiny metastases around the lesion and distant ones; due to the limitation of operation technique, it is difficult and time-consuming to reveal and dissect individual parts; pneumoperitoneum may cause complications such as subcutaneous emphysema, development of occult hernia, venous thrombosis of lower limbs, hypercapnia, etc.; medium and low rectal cancer requires the use of cutting and suturing apparatus and anastomosis and other instruments, which increases the economic burden of patients and to a certain extent limits the promotion and popularity of the procedure.  Bleeding is one of the most problematic issues in laparoscopic colorectal surgery and used to be one of the problems that hindered the development of laparoscopic colon surgery. Bleeding affects both the exposure of the operative field and hinders further operations, therefore, the operation requires gentle operation, steady force, no violence, clear and meticulous dissection. The introduction of ultrasonic knife and Ligasure has brought much convenience to the operation, and their good cutting and hemostatic functions ensure the rapid and smooth execution of the operation. In this group of patients, due to the use of the above-mentioned instruments, intraoperative bleeding was minimal, averaging 120 ml, and there was no intraoperative blood transfusion in any case. The anastomotic leak is one of the serious complications after colorectal surgery. For this reason, it is one of the key measures to reduce complications to ensure good blood supply at both ends of the anastomosis and anastomosis without tension and torsion. After surgery, the pelvic cavity is routinely injected with water to soak the anastomosis, and the anal canal is injected with gas to test for leakage. The tumor implantation and metastasis in the incision and skin puncture site once affected the development of laparoscopic tumor surgery, and it is believed that the mechanism of its occurrence may be: leakage of Co2 along the poke; “contamination” of tumor cells adhering to the incision by intraoperative instruments; aerosolization of tumor cells; influence of Co2 on the internal environment; direct implantation and metastasis of shed tumor cells. For this reason, the intraoperative procedure should be carried out strictly without the need of tumor cells. For this reason, the principle of tumor-free operation should be strictly implemented during surgery, and direct clamping and squeezing of tumors by instruments should be avoided as much as possible, especially for tumors that have invaded the plasma membrane layer. In addition, a lower pneumoperitoneum pressure should be used as much as possible; the Trocar should be fixed with silk sutures after placement to avoid slipping off with the entry and exit of instruments and to avoid gas escaping from the poke; the incision should be protected with specimen tape when dragging out the diseased intestinal tube; the gas should be released from the abdominal cavity before removing the Trocar; the abdominal cavity and incision should be rinsed with distilled water + 5-Fu repeatedly after surgery.  It is safe and feasible to complete laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery by a treatment team of laparoscopic surgeons with experience in open surgery by strictly following the principles of tumor surgery and appropriate case selection. Its advantages such as small trauma, fast recovery, short hospital stay and cosmetic have been accepted by patients, while the need for special instruments and high price are its disadvantages. With the advancement of technology and improvement of instruments, especially after localization, more patients with colorectal cancer will undergo laparoscopic surgery.