Although rectal cancer is a life-threatening disease, it is highly curable in its early stages. Depending on the location and state of the cancer, surgery may be required. To avoid life-altering consequences associated with traditional rectal surgery, physicians are increasingly using treatment options designed to improve outcomes and increase the chances of preserving organs.
Traditionally, rectal cancer surgery has involved either a low anterior resection – removing the part of the rectum containing the cancer and reconnecting the remaining part of the rectum to the colon (anastomosis) – or an abdominoperineal resection where surgeons will remove the anus, rectum and part of the sigmoid colon and attach the end of the intestine to an opening in the surface of the abdomen, called a colostomy.
While these surgical options can be life-saving, they can have profound impacts for a patients’ quality of life. If the anus and rectum are removed, the patient will permanently have to live with a colostomy bag to collect body waste.
To avoid the complications of these invasive surgeries, UCSF colorectal surgeons offer a robotic transanal minimally invasive surgery, also known as TAMIS, for removal of rectal polyps and early-stage rectal cancers (stage 0 and stage 1). TAMIS is performed robotically through the rectum with special microsurgical instruments with a longer reach and better visibility into the rectum than traditional surgery techniques. By performing this minimally invasive procedure, surgeons can remove lesions high inside the rectum and no abdominal incision is required.
“With robotic TAMIS, there is no abdominal incision so there is less risk of infection, hernia and other post-surgical complications,” said Mark Zhao, MD, a colorectal cancer surgeon and UCSF assistant professor of Clinical Surgery. “Patients can often go home the same day, recover faster and return to their regular activities more quickly. There is no anastomosis, and the patients maintain the majority of the rectum, so patients often enjoy much improved quality of life.”