Single-Port Laparoscopic Surgery Can Be Performed Safely and Appropriately for Colon Cancer: Short-Term Results of a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

INTRODUCTION: Single-port laparoscopic surgery (SPLS) has gained popularity due to its cosmetic benefit, and therefore, has been applied to several kinds of benign operations, such as appendectomy and cholecystectomy. The safety and suitability of SPLS for colon cancer has not been widely proved. We aimed at validating the safety, efficacy, and short-term quality of life (QOL) of SPLS compared with conventional laparoscopic surgery (CLS) in patients with colon cancer.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between June 2010 and April 2011, a total of 62 patients with pathology-proven colon cancer were randomly allocated to two groups: SPLS and CLS. Data were analyzed according to the intention-to-treat principle.

RESULTS: In total, there were 62 patients (35 men and 27 women) with a mean age of 63.0 years (range, 38-82). The baseline characteristics of the patients and tumor factors were well balanced between two groups. The operation time and estimated blood loss were similar, whereas intraoperative complications only occurred in three patients, all of whom were in the SPLS group. Conversion to CLS or open surgery occurred in 6 (19.4%) patients of the SPLS group. The number of harvested lymph nodes and length of proximal and distal resection margins were not statistically different between two groups. Postoperative complications and recovery of bowel function were similar in both groups, but fatal postoperative complication occurred in one case in the SPLS group. The QOL between two groups was identical in all domains until postoperative 12 months.

CONCLUSIONS: SPLS for colon cancer is feasible and can be performed by following oncologic principles. However, surgeons should be aware of the potential for unexpected adjacent organ injury ( ClinicalTrial.gov identifier: NCT01203969).