No Doppler Single Position-Lateral Intercostal Artery Perforator Flap (NDSP-LICAP): a Safe and Versatile Flap for Breast Oncoplasty in Resource-Limited Setting.

INTRODUCTION: The lateral intercostal artery perforator flap (LICAP) has emerged as one of the safest and less morbid flaps for lateral and central breast defects. We hereby describe a reproducible no Doppler single position (NDSP) technique to harvest it in single position without handheld Doppler, making it a versatile flap for lateral breast defects in resource-limited setting also. MATERIALS AND METHODS: With this technique, we performed a total of 22 LICAP turnover flaps over a period of 18 months from January 2020 to June 2021. In all 22 cases, the indication of flap was to fill the post-breast conservation surgery (BCS) defects in outer quadrant of breast. All LICAP flaps were harvested by surface marking of anatomical landmarks and without handheld Doppler. RESULTS: Out of 22 LICAP turnover flaps, thirteen were harvested for left breast and nine for right breast. The median width and length of the flap were 12.2 cm and 19.6 cm, respectively. The additional mean operative time was 41 min. All LICAP flaps survived well, and grade 1 Clavien-Dindo morbidity was documented in four cases. Mean hospital stay was 2.6 days. All patients received radiotherapy on their stipulated schedule. Early cosmetic outcome was good, and long-term outcomes are awaited. CONCLUSION: NDSP-LICAP flap is a workhorse for lateral breast defects. Precise knowledge of perforators and anatomical landmarks can be used for harvesting these flaps, thus avoiding ultrasound Doppler and dedicated training for perforator localization. This technique has short learning curve without the need for any plastic surgery training. The early cosmetic outcomes are good.

Palliative Surgery for Advanced Cancer: Clinical Profile, Spectrum of Surgery and Outcomes from a Tertiary Care Cancer Centre in Low-Middle-Income Country.

OBJECTIVES: Palliative surgery for cancer plays an important role in the overall management, especially in low-middle countries with a significant burden of advanced cancers. There is a paucity of literature related to the field of palliative surgery. In this study, we present the clinical spectrum, profile of surgical interventions and outcomes of palliative surgical procedures performed at a tertiary cancer centre involving multiple organ systems. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis of prospectively maintained surgical oncology database of a tertiary care cancer centre was performed. Patients fulfilling the criteria of palliative surgery were analysed for clinical spectrum, indications for surgery, palliative surgical procedures and post-operative outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 678 out of 8300 patients fulfilled the criteria for palliative surgery. Palliative surgical procedures were performed most commonly for gastro-oesophageal malignancies (36.4%) followed by colorectal cancers (24%) and breast cancer (12%). Palliative mastectomy was the most common procedure performed for advanced breast cancer and 7% of sarcoma patients had amputations. Symptom relief could be achieved in 80-90% of patients and post-operative morbidity was relatively high among hepatobiliary, gastrointestinal and gynaecological cancer patients. CONCLUSION: Globally, a significant number of cancer patients need palliative surgical intervention, especially in LMIC with a high burden of advanced cancers. Results of the current study indicate that gastrointestinal cancer patients constitute a major proportion of patients undergoing palliative surgery. Overall results of the current study indicate that excellent palliation can be achieved in majority of patients with acceptable morbidity and hospital stay.

Clinical outcomes and technical description of unstented end to side pancreaticogastrostomy by small posterior gastrotomy.

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: Morbidity following Whipple's surgery largely depends upon the pancreatic stump anastomosis leak. Pancreaticogastrostomy is one of the techniques of pancreatic stump reconstruction and is described variously in the literature. Duct to mucosa pancreaticogastrostomy is described either by a large 3-4 cm posterior gastrotomy or by small gastrotomy of 2-3 mm with the use of internal stents along with. We describe clinical outcomes and technique of 2 layer end to side pancreatico-gastrostomy by a small posterior gastrotomy without the use of internal stents. METHODS: Hospital records of 35 patients where the technique of, small posterior gastrotomy end to side duct to mucosa pancreatico-gastrostomy without internal stents, was used for pancreatic stump reconstruction were studied retrospectively. The data were analyzed for demographic details, stage of the disease, and short term outcomes related to surgical procedure. RESULTS: The mean duration of surgery was 7.4 hours. Grade A, B, and C POPF were observed in 10 (28.5%), 3 (8.5%), and 1 (2.8%) of patients respectively. The mean time to remove pancreatic drain was 9 days, and the mean time to start oral feeds was 8.9 days. The mean hospital stay was 12.9 days (07-26). Thirty days mortality was 2.8%. CONCLUSIONS: Unstented duct to mucosa end to side pancreatico-gastrostomy technique is comparable with other pancreatico-gastrostomy techniques in outcomes in terms of POPF, morbidity, mortality, and hospital stay. However, to establish the superiority or inferiority of this technique, a larger study is recommended.