Complete mesocolic excision with D3 lymph node dissection in laparoscopic colectomy for stages II and III colon cancer: Long-term oncologic outcomes in 168 patients

Background: There is emerging evidence that complete mesocolic excision (CME) for colon cancer produces favorable oncologic outcomes. The applicability of CME technique in laparoscopic colectomy has not been fully explored. The aim of our retrospective study was to evaluate the feasibility of the CME technique with D3 lymphadenectomy in laparoscopic colectomy and its short- and long-term outcomes. Methods: Between September 2006 and December 2009, 168 laparoscopic colectomies were performed for stages II and III colon cancer. Prospectively, collected data on demographics, tumor characteristics, complications, and outcomes were analyzed retrospectively. Results: Eighty-seven patients (51.8 %) had stage II colon cancer, and 81 patients had stage III cancer. The mean operative time was 196.0 ± 61.2 min. The overall morbidity rate was 17.8 %, which included anastomotic leak in 10 patients (5.9 %). There was no operative mortality. The number of lymph nodes harvested was 27.8 ± 13.6. With a median follow-up of 57.3 months, locoregional recurrence and systemic metastasis developed in 6 (3.6 %) and 14 patients (8.3 %), respectively. Seven patients died of causes related to cancer, and all had stage III cancer. Disease-free survival at 5-years was 95.2 % for patients with stage II and 80.9 % for patients with stage III. Conclusions: Standardization of laparoscopic CME and D3 lymphadenectomy is expedient. The technique is associated with acceptable morbidity and provides excellent oncologic outcomes for stage II and stage III colon cancer. A longer follow-up is needed to validate the enhancement of oncological outcome related to this surgical concept.