ABSTRACT
Background: The presence of air in the peritoneal cavity (pneumoperitoneum) is often secondary to perforated viscus. Emergent operative intervention is typically warranted in non-cancer patients. Cancer patients present a unique challenge as they have an increased risk of pneumoperitoneum due to local tumour invasion, radiation therapy, and frequent endoscopic procedures. There is a paucity of literature on the management of patients undergoing chemotherapy who present with pneumoperitoneum. The authors conducted a scoping review to identify and synthesize preliminary evidence on the presentation, management, and outcomes of this patient population. Materials and methods: A scoping review of cases of pneumoperitoneum in cancer patients from 1990 to 2022 was conducted using the Arksey and O'Malley five-stage approach. Inclusion criteria were a known diagnosis of cancer, chemotherapy within 6 months of presentation, and imaging confirmation of pneumoperitoneum. The authors' exclusion criteria were cancer diagnosis at the time of presentation, perforation secondary to local cancer invasion, and last chemotherapy session greater than 6 months prior to presentation. Results: Thirty-four cases (8 paediatric, 26 adults) were identified. The median time from the last chemotherapy treatment to presentation with pneumoperitoneum was 14 days. Twenty-one patients were managed operatively, and 13 were managed non-operatively. The most common source of perforation was multiple sites along the bowel. Thirty-day mortality was 33.3% for the operative cohort and 23.1% for the non-operative group. Conclusions: Pneumoperitoneum in cancer patients remains a highly morbid condition with a mortality rate of approximately 30%, regardless of the treatment approach. Non-operative management should be pursued whenever possible.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Pneumoperitoneum - free air within the peritoneal cavity - is often the result of bowel perforation, though other causes include residual postprocedural or postoperative air and barotrauma. In non-cancer patients, operative intervention is often required. Cancer patients, on the other hand, present a unique set of challenges as they usually have elevated risk of pneumoperitoneum from local radiation therapy, frequent endoscopic procedures, and tumor invasion. Factors such as malnutrition, neutropenia, chemotherapy, and steroid use make emergent surgery tenuous in cancer patients. There is a paucity of published literature on the management of pneumoperitoneum in patients actively undergoing chemotherapy. The main objective of this scoping review is to assess the presentation, management, and subsequent outcomes of this unique patient population. Materials and Methods: The authors will utilize the framework for performing scoping reviews as outlined by Arksey and O'Malley. They will perform the search for articles in three electronic databases (i.e. SCOPUS, PubMed, Embase) and relevant gray literature. Only articles available in English and published between 1999 and 2022 will be included. Inclusion criteria will be a known diagnosis of cancer, chemotherapy within 6 months of presentation, and imaging confirmation of pneumoperitoneum. Exclusion criteria will be cancer diagnosis at the time of presentation, perforation secondary to cancer itself, and chemotherapy greater than 6 months prior to presentation. A tailored extraction frame to extract relevant information from published articles that meet our inclusion criteria. The data using both descriptive statistics and thematic analysis of the main study questions. Ethics and Dissemination: Since the authors will not be collecting primary data, formal ethical approval is not required. They study findings will be disseminated through abstracts, conference presentations, and peer-reviewed publications.
ABSTRACT
Introduction and importance: Alectinib, a highly potent, highly selective, brain-penetrant anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor is now the first line therapy for patients with metastatic ALK-positive non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Case presentation: We report a rare case of pneumoperitoneum following alectinib initiation for metastatic non small cell lung cancer in a 74-year-old African American female. Patient developed abdominal pain approximately 2 weeks after starting alectinib. She was hemodynamically stable, and imaging revealed pneumoperitoneum. Patient was successfully managed non-operatively. Clinical discussion: Gastrointestinal perforation presenting as pneumoperitoneum is a very rare complication of alectinib. To our knowledge our patient is only the second case to be reported in the literature since its approval. The complication is likely attributable to the rapid tumor regression in the gastrointestinal tract. Non-operative management should be attempted if possible. Conclusion: Oncologists should be aware of the risk of gastrointestinal perforation when initiating cytotoxic chemotherapy on patients with metastatic NSCLC. A multidisciplinary approach is critical in appropriately individualizing care in this patient population.
