Full thickness laparo-endoscopic excision for benign colonic polyps
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An observational study of full thickness laparo-endoscopic excision for benign colonic polyps (FLEX)
IRAS ID
146376
Contact name
Robin Kennedy
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
North West London Hospitals NHS Trust
Research summary
Standard surgery for large bowel (colon) polyps involves removal of large sections of bowel (segmental colectomy) with its attached lymph gland tissue, which carries no benefit. This type of surgery results in complications in up to a third of our patients, some of which can be very serious. In response to these risks, a more minimally invasive technique for local full-thickness excision of bowel polyps has been reported in more than 500 cases in the published literature. This full-thickness laparo-endoscopic excision of the colon (FLEX) procedure combines the use of a telescope (colonoscope) in the colon and a ‘key-hole operation’ (laparoscopy) to plicate a disc of bowel with a polyp in it and then excise the whole disc using a laparoscopic stapling device. Our local hospital trust have authorized the use of FLEX as part of standard care. The main focus of this study is to document how patients recover following the FLEX technique for benign large bowel (colon) polyps as part of their usual care. As we are learning about the FLEX procedure, we want to carefully document the impact of the technique on patients. It is important that we assess how patients feel afterwards, whether they have any problems and how their recovery progresses. We also want to learn about the FLEX procedure by examining where and how best it can be applied. To do this, we would like to ask for the permission of patients undergoing the FLEX procedure to look at their notes and records in order to document their operation and recovery.
Having learned more about the FLEX technique through this study, we may be better placed in future to organize a larger study that could explore whether the FLEX technique can be applied in more NHS hospitals other than St Mark’s.
REC name
South Central - Oxford A Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/SC/0654
Date of REC Opinion
6 Jan 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion