Objective: Obesity is known to be a preoperative risk factor for rectal cancer surgery. This study aimed to investigate the influence of obesity on the surgical outcomes of laparoscopic surgery for rectal cancer.
Methods: The clinical data of 356 patients with rectal cancer from Jan 2012 to Dec 2015 were analyzed retrospectively. Perioperative outcomes were compared between 48 patients with a BMI (body mass index) ≥30 kg/m2 [obese group ] and 308 patients with a BMI≥30 kg/m2 [non-obese group] who underwent laparoscopic surgery.
Results: Operation times were significantly longer for the obese group than for the non-obese group (125.2±30.5 min vs. 180.5±58.2 min, P=0.021). There were no statistically significant differences between two groups in terms of intraoperative blood loss, the number of retrieved lymph nodes, postoperative recovery and postoperative complications (P≥0.05). During the follow-up period, the overall survival rates were not significantly different between the two groups [66.7% (32/48) vs 67.2% (207/308), P=0.787]. The differences in recurrence and metastasis between the two groups were not statistically significant.
Conclusion: Our analysis revealed that laparoscopic surgery can be safely performed in patients with BMI≥30. The procedure was considered to be difficult but sufficiently feasible.
Keywords: Body mass index; Laparoscopy; Obese; Treatment outcome; rectal cancer.