Second-look Surgery Detects Low Volume Recurrent Disease Following Cytoreductive Surgery for Peritoneal Carcinomatosis.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Formation of stoma during cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) for peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) is often performed to reduce the risk of anastomotic leak. Subsequent stoma reversal provides a unique opportunity for second-look surgery to detect early peritoneal recurrence. Current surveillance methods often fail to detect disease early, including imaging and biochemical markers. In our study, we examined the safety and efficacy of second-look surgery for detection and treatment of disease recurrence.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data from 35 patients undergoing stoma reversal from 2015 to 2019 with negative pre-operative imaging.

RESULTS: A total of 37% of cases had disease recurrence, with a median peritoneal cancer index of 4. Complete cytoreduction was achieved in all patients. The majority of patients (77%) suffered minor complications only. Median length of hospital stay was 12 days.

CONCLUSION: Second-look surgery detects early disease recurrence and is a safe alternative to conventional screening methods post primary CRS/HIPEC for PC. Long-term, routine second-look surgery can improve survival.