title: Palliative resection of colorectal cancer: does it prolong survival?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  It is still a matter of debate as to whether resective surgery of the primary tumor may prolong the survival of patients affected by incurable colorectal cancer (CRC). The main goal of this retrospective study, carried out on patients not undergoing any therapy other than surgery, was to quantify the benefit of primary tumor removal in patients with differently presenting incurable CRC.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and thirty consecutive patients were operated on for incurable CRC (83 undergoing resective and 47 non-resective procedures). With the purpose of comparing homogenous populations and of identifying patients who may benefit from primary tumor resection, the patients were classified according to classes of disease, based on the "metastatic pattern" and the "resectability of primary tumor."
  
  
  RESULTS
  In patients with "resectable" primary tumors, resective procedures are associated with longer median survival than after non-resective ones (9 months vs 3). Only patients with distant spread without neoplastic ascites/carcinosis benefit from primary tumor removal (median survival: 9 months vs 3). Morbidity and mortality of resective procedures is not significantly different from that of non-resective surgery, either in the population studied or in any of the groups considered.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Palliative resection of primary CRC should be pursued in patients with unresectable distant metastasis (without carcinomatosis), and, intraoperatively, whenever the primary tumor is technically resectable.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Chirurgiche, Università di Parma, Parma, Italia. renatocosti@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Costi
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mazzeo
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Di Mauro
authors.forename: Licia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Veronesi
authors.forename: Giuliano
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sansebastiano
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Violi
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Roncoroni
authors.forename: Leopoldo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sarli
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010166:Palliative Care; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate