This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Andreola, S. Articles by Gallino, G. F. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Andreola, S. Articles by Gallino, G. F. Related Collections Surgery

Adenocarcinoma of the Lower Third of the Rectum Surgically Treated With a <10-MM Distal Clearance: Preliminary Results in 35 N0 Patients

From the Department of Pathology (SA, GS, GT), Division of Surgical Oncology B (EL, FB, GB, GFG), and Department of Radiotherapy (FV), Istituto Nazionale per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori, Milan, Italy; and the Department of Pathology (PG), Azienda Ospedaliera Ospedali Garibaldi, S.Luigi, S.Curro’, Ascoli-Tomaselli, Catania, Italy.

Correspondence: Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Dr. Salvatore Andreola, Anatomia Patologica, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Via Venezian 1, 20133 Milano, Italy; Fax: 39-2-2390756; E-mail: gios{at}istitutotumori.mi.it

Background: Recent reports suggest that a distal clearance (DC) of 10 mm at the lower surgical margin may be considered adequate in the surgical treatment of rectal cancer, but there are no data on the possible adequacy of a <10-mm DC in N0 patients in whom a good prognosis can otherwise be expected, that is, those with negative surgical margins and negative lymph nodes.

Methods: Between November 1991 and December 1998, 154 consecutive patients with adenocarcinoma of the lower third of the rectum had a total rectal resection with total mesorectal excision and coloendoanal anastomosis. Among 76 N0 patients, there were 35 with <10-mm DC and 41 with 10-mm DC. Each group was divided into two subgroups depending on whether the surgical margins were involved or not, and the rate of local recurrence in the various categories was compared. All B2 Astler-Coller stage patients in the series received postsurgical chemoradiotherapy.

Results: The local recurrence rate in the 35 patients with DC <10 mm was 11.4% and that of the 41 patients with DC 10 mm was 7.3%. When only patients with negative surgical margins were considered, the local recurrence rate was 3.4% for those with <10-mm DC and 5.1% for those with 10-mm DC.

Conclusions: Our results suggest that a radical surgery with <10-mm DC followed by chemoradiotherapy may be adequate in N0 patients, provided that a careful pathologic examination of the surgical specimen excludes the presence of lymph node metastases and that the distal rectal and mesorectal resection margins fall in healthy tissue.

Key Words: Rectal adenocarcinoma • Distal clearance • Local recurrence • Sphincter-saving surgery

This article has been cited by other articles:

				G. L. Cascini, A. Avallone, P. Delrio, C. Guida, F. Tatangelo, P. Marone, L. Aloj, F. De Martinis, P. Comella, V. Parisi, et al. 18F-FDG PET Is an Early Predictor of Pathologic Tumor Response to Preoperative Radiochemotherapy in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer J. Nucl. Med., August 1, 2006; 47(8): 1241 - 1248. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				H. G. Moore, E. Riedel, B. D. Minsky, L. Saltz, P. Paty, D. Wong, A. M. Cohen, and J. G. Guillem Adequacy of 1-cm Distal Margin After Restorative Rectal Cancer Resection With Sharp Mesorectal Excision and Preoperative Combined-Modality Therapy Ann. Surg. Oncol., January 1, 2003; 10(1): 80 - 85. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]