Comparison of survival outcomes between laparoscopic and open colectomy for transverse colon cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

This study aimed to compare laparoscopic with open resection for transverse colon cancer (TCC) regarding long-term survival outcomes.

Systematic literature search was performed on PubMed, Ovid, and Cochrane Library for studies comparing laparoscopic with open resection for TCC. The last search was performed on October 7, 2022. Oncological and survival outcomes were collected and analyzed. This meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager Software (v 5.3).

This study included fifteen studies published between 2014 and 2022 with 2556 patients in total. When compared with the laparoscopic group, the open group had significantly more tumors locating on middle transverse colon (P = 0.006, OR = 0.67, 95%CI [0.50, 0.89], I² = 12%) and more patients received transverse colectomy (P = 0.03, OR = 0.66, 95%CI [0.46, 0.96], I² = 53%) as results. Comparable tumor stage (P = 0.13, OR = 0.81, 95%CI [0.62, 1.06], I² = 55%) and number of lymph node harvested (P = 0.22, WMD =  −0.81, 95%CI [−2.09, 0.47], I² = 73%) were observed between the two groups. As for survival outcomes, no significant difference was observed between the two groups for 5-year disease-free survival (DFS; P = 0.61, OR = 0.93, 95%CI [0.72, 1.21], I² = 0%), 5-year overall survival (OS; P = 0.83, OR = 0.97, 95%CI [0.71, 1.32], I² = 0%), 3-year DFS (P = 0.97, OR = 0.96, 95%CI [0.69, 1.32], I² = 0%), and 3-year OS (P = 0.67, OR = 0.92, 95%CI [0.63, 1.35], I² = 0%). In the subgroup analysis according to tumor stage, the results did not change.

Current evidence based on studies demonstrated that laparoscopic procedure could be safely performed for TCC, and it would not affect the long-term survival. Randomized clinical trials with a larger sample size are warranted in the future for further investigation.