Abstract: Objective:To explore the clinical efficacy of transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM) for the rectal tumor.
Methods:The clinical data of 35 patients with rectal tumors who were admitted to the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University between November 2012 and March 2014 were retrospectively analyzed. The preoperative endorectal ultrasonography (ERUS) was applied to patients for evaluating local invasion and lymph node metastasis, and confirming the pathological types of tumors, size and location of tumors, depth of invasion and with or without lymph node enlargement around the rectal wall, and then patients underwent TEMs. Patients were followed up by outpatient examination, telephone interview and instant messenger (WeChat) till August 2014.
Results:The tumors of 6 patients were located in the anterior wall of rectum, 11 were in the posterior wall of rectum, 9 were in the left and 9 in the right side walls of rectum. The diameter of tumor, distances between distal margin of tumor and anal verge, volume of intraoperative blood loss and operation time were (2.3 ±0.9)cm (range, 0.7-4.8 cm), (8±4)cm(range, 4-17 cm), (32±19)mL (range, 5-60 mL) and (79±35)minutes (range, 31-150 minutes), respectively. Tumors with positive margin showed the negative margin after supplementary resection. All the patients didn′t receive the specific analgesic therapy with the intake of liquid diets at postoperative day 1-3, and they were discharged after anal exsufflation. The duration of hospital stay was (4.2±1.2)days (range, 2.0-9.0 days). The results of pathological examination showed that rectal adenoma were detected in 12 patients, rectal carcinoma in situ in 2 patients (Tis stage), rectal carcinoid in 2 patients, lowrisk T1 stage of rectal cancer in 9 patients, highrisk T1 stage in 7 patients and T2 stage in 3 patients who received chemotherapy. Seventeen patients had postoperative complications, including 9 with perineum swelling and frequent defecation, 4 with functional impairment of anal sphincter, 2 with acute urinary retention and 2 with milderrhysis with the eased symptoms after symptomatic treatment. A total of 35 patients were followed up for 5- 22 months with a median time of 11 months. The recurrence rate of rectal cancer was 2/19, including in the lowand highrisk T1 stage of 1/16 and in T2 stage of 1/3. Two of 12 patients without adjuvant therapy had recurrence of tumors, and other patients had no recurrence of tumors after adjuvant therapy.
Conclusion: TEM is safe and feasible in the treatment of rectal adenoma, carcinoma in situ, rectal carcinoid as well as rectal cancer in the low and high risk T1 stage.