Rectal cancer surgery: does low volume imply worse outcome—a single surgeon experience

BACKGROUND: The centralisation of rectal cancer management to high-volume oncology centres has translated to improved oncological and survival outcomes. We hypothesise that individual surgeon caseload, specialisation, and experience may be as significant in determining oncologic and postoperative outcomes in rectal cancer surgery. METHODS: A prospectively maintained colorectal surgery database was reviewed for patients undergoing rectal cancer surgery between January 2004 and June 2020. Data studied included demographics, Dukes’ and TNM staging, neoadjuvant treatment, preoperative risk assessment scores, postoperative complications, 30-day readmission rates, length of stay (LOS), and long-term survival. Primary outcome measures were 30-day mortality and long-term survival compared to national and international standards and best practice guidelines. RESULTS: In total, 87 patients were included (mean age: 66 years [range: 36–88]). The mean length of stay (LOS) was 16.5 days (SD 6.0). The median ICU LOS was 3 days (range 2–17). Overall, 30-day readmission rate was 16.4%. Twenty-four patients (26.4%) experienced ≥ 1 postoperative complication. The 30-day operative mortality rate was 3.45%. Overall 5-year survival rate was 66.6%. A significant correlation was observed between P-POSSUM scores and postoperative complications (p = 0.041), and all four variants of POSSUM, CR-POSSUM, and P-POSSUM scores and 30-day mortality. CONCLUSION: Despite improved outcomes seen with centralisation of rectal cancer services at an institutional level, surgeon caseload, experience, and specialisation is of similar importance in obtaining optimal outcomes within institutions. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11845-023-03372-z.