Title:Impact of Preoperative Corticosteroids on Oncological Outcomes Following Colorectal Surgery for Cancer
Volume: 18
Issue: 1
Author(s): Claudio Lazzara, Cristina Damiano, Iman Komaei, Saverio Latteri, Angela Alibrandi, Giuseppe Navarra and Giuseppe Curro*
Affiliation:
- Department of Human Pathology of Adult and Evolutive Age, University Hospital of Messina, Messina,Italy
Keywords:
Pre-operative corticosteroids, colorectal surgery, oncological outcomes, neuroendocrine, anastomotic
leakage, cancer.
Abstract: Background: Despite its key role in the treatment, major abdominal surgery
has been indicated as a cause of a metabolic, neuroendocrine and immunological response.
Several studies have demonstrated that the magnitude of this postoperative Systemic
Inflammatory Response (SIR) is directly associated with the development of complications
after colorectal surgery.
Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between preoperative
administration of corticosteroids and overall survival, disease free survival rates
and anastomotic leakage in colorectal cancer patients treated with surgery.
Methods: A retrospective review of prospectively collected data was performed of 354
patients with colorectal cancer who had undergone curative resection between June 2012
and December 2016, at the Surgical Oncology Unit, University Hospital of Messina.
Results: A total of 249 patients matched the inclusion criteria and were included in this
study. A total of 159 patients in stages I and II with negative lymph vascular invasion
were included in the ‘N- group’ while 90 patients from stage III with positive lymph
vascular invasion were included in ‘N+ group’. The OS and DFS in N+ group showed a
better 5-years OS (88,46% vs. 81,25%) and DFS (73% vs. 78,1%) rates for patients who
have been given preoperative corticosteroids, but the Log-Rank test did not reach statistical
significance. Also in the N- group, the Kaplan-Meier curves showed better 5-years OS
(97% vs. 87,4%) and DFS (91,4% vs. 88,7%) rates for patients who have been given preoperative
corticosteroids, but the Log-Rank test did not reach statistical significance.
Moreover, the preoperative administration of corticosteroids did not modify the frequency
of anastomotic leakage.
Conclusion: This study has demonstrated that preoperative corticosteroids administration
improves outcomes following colorectal surgery probably as a result of attenuating the
SIR. Our results thus do not support avoiding low-dose preoperative corticosteroids in colorectal
surgery. Nevertheless, further work is warranted to validate the influence of preoperative
corticosteroids in colorectal surgery.
