Successful laparoscopic surgery for 90-year-old patient with colon cancer

For about a month now, patient Tran Thi S (90 years old, Nam Dan) has had dull abdominal pain around the navel, bloody stools, constant urge to defecate, and extreme fatigue. When examined at Cua Dong General Hospital, colonoscopy, the patient was diagnosed with sigmoid colon cancer.

A team of doctors and nurses from Cua Dong General Hospital performed endoscopic surgery on a 90-year-old patient with colon cancer. Photo: Cao Phuong

The patient was assigned to complete clinical tests, and a consultation indicated laparoscopic colon resection. After more than 2 hours of surgery to resect the sigmoid colon and rectum, and to dissect the lymph nodes using laparoscopic surgery, the surgery was a success. On the second day after surgery, the patient had the gastric tube removed, was allowed to exercise, and was given light porridge. He is expected to be discharged in the next few days.

Thanks to timely detection and surgery at an early stage, cancer patients avoid the risk of having to undergo chemotherapy after surgery. Photo: Cao Phuong

Dr. Thai Doan Cong - Head of General Surgery Department, Deputy Director of Cua Dong General Hospital, predicted that if the patient is not operated on early, the cancer cells will grow larger in place, invade the surrounding area, metastasize to lymph nodes, metastasize to distant areas (liver, lungs, etc.) or may cause intestinal obstruction. It is important that the patient is diagnosed with the disease at an early stage.

Doctors performed a 5cm abdominal incision to create a connecting joint between the descending colon and the rectum. Photo: Cao Phuong

Currently, in Vietnam, the number of cancer patients who are diagnosed early is still too small. With this group of patients, if they are completely operated on, they can be completely cured, only needing regular monitoring, avoiding the risk of having to undergo chemotherapy after surgery.

Patient Tran Thi S. recovered quickly after surgery. Photo: Cao Phuong

According to Dr. Thai Doan Cong, currently, many families with elderly relatives who are diagnosed with cancer are often worried, even giving up and not getting treatment. Age is one of the issues that need to be considered when treating cancer, but that should not be a reason to give up. If conditions allow and the technique is guaranteed, surgery should be performed to help improve the patient's quality of life.

Gastrointestinal cancer is one of the common cancers, especially colorectal cancer and stomach cancer which are on the rise. To prevent this disease, people should limit their intake of meat and fat from animal protein; supplement enough fiber, vitamins E, C, A... and maintain physical activity, and regularly go for health check-ups, periodic gastric and colon endoscopy; to promptly detect the disease at an early stage, avoid metastasis and other complications./.