Introduction: Fifteen to thirty percent of colonic cancers are diagnosed at acute colic obstruction stage. In this situation surgery is associated with a high morbi-mortality. The self-expandable metallic stents (SEM) have two objectives: (a) resolution of the obstructive to allow secondary planified radical surgical procedure; (b) palliative in the event of advanced disease.
Patients and methods: From May 2001 to December 2002, 11 patients, mean age 75 +/- 8 years, presenting with acute colic obstruction were initially treated by SEM placed by endoscopy. Four patients were classified score ASA 4. Ten patients had a colonic cancer, and a patient presented a peritoneal carcinomatosis from an ovarian carcinoma. Overall five patients had a carcinomatosis. Stenosis, mean length 4 +/- 3 cm, were located on the left colon. In five patients the SEM was proposed as a palliative treatment.
Results: Successfully placement of SEM was obtained in 10 (91%) patient without perforation. Three complications (bleeding, reobstruction, migration) were observed. Clinical success (colonic decompression within 96 h without endoscopic or surgical reintervention) was observed in nine out of ten (90%) patients. Six patients had a SEM with curative attempt allowing (i) colonic resection (9 +/- 2 days) without stomy (one postoperative death) in five patients; (ii) a colo-colic derivation for diffuse carcinomatosis discovered peroperatively. A diverting colostomy was carried out in two of the four patients (j6, j30) (reobstruction, migration) for whom the SEM had been proposed as palliative treatment.
Conclusions: This study confirms that SEM and surgery are not competitive but complementary techniques. When the SEM is placed with curative attempt, it allows resolution of the obstructive syndrome and secondary planified radical surgical procedure under better conditions. The results observed in the palliative SEM group suggested to reconsider this indication.