Multicentre study of surgical referral and outcomes of patients with benign colorectal lesions

BACKGROUND: A multicentre cohort study was performed to analyse the motivations for surgical referral of patients with benign colorectal lesions, and to evaluate the endoscopic and pathological characteristics of these lesions as well as short‐term surgical outcomes. METHODS: Patients who underwent surgery for a benign colorectal lesion in 15 Dutch hospitals between January 2014 and December 2017 were selected from the pathology registry. Lesions were defined as complex when at least one of the following features was present: size at least 40 mm, difficult location according to the endoscopist, previous failed attempt at resection, or non‐lifting sign. RESULTS: A total of 358 patients were included (322 colonic and 36 rectal lesions). The main reasons for surgical referral of lesions in the colon and rectum were large size (33·5 and 47 per cent respectively) and suspicion of invasive growth (31·1 and 58 per cent). Benign lesions could be categorized as complex in 80·6 per cent for colonic and 80 per cent for rectal locations. Surgery consisted of local excision in 5·9 and 64 per cent of colonic and rectal lesions respectively, and complicated postoperative course rates were noted in 11·2 and 3 per cent. In the majority of patients, no attempt was made to resect the lesion endoscopically (77·0 per cent of colonic and 83 per cent of rectal lesions). CONCLUSION: The vast majority of the benign lesions referred for surgical resection could be classified as complex. Considering the substantial morbidity of surgery for benign colonic lesions, reassessment for endoscopic resection by another advanced endoscopy centre seems to be underused and should be encouraged.