What is peritoneal carcinomatosis?
We speak of peritoneal carcinomatosis when cancerous cells contaminate the peritoneum, i.e. the membrane that protects the abdomen. This contamination can occur in the parietal peritoneum, which covers the walls of the abdomen; in the visceral peritoneum, which covers different organs such as the spleen, stomach, intestines and liver, in men, as well as the uterus in women.
When does it happen?
This pathology usually occurs when an ovarian or digestive cancer metastasizes and spreads through the peritoneum. However, it is currently possible to carry out treatments that allow patients suffering from peritoneal carcinomatosis, derived from colorectal, gastric or ovarian oncologic processes, to have a longer life expectancy.
What does the treatment consist of?
The ideal treatment is the Sugarbaker technique, a technique that science has shown to prolong the life expectancy of these patients and which has been applied for approximately 20 years in Spain.
It is based on the principle that eliminating a disease that is not visible is a great threat to the patient’s life. It considers that one should not only act against the symptoms that can be deduced, but against the whole tumor disease. To do this, the tumor must first be removed and then any suspicious traces must be eliminated from the area by means of high-temperature chemotherapy.
This chemotherapeutic method, which is called hyperthermic intraperitoneal, serves to clean out all the cancer cells to prevent another cancer from developing again later on.
What is the GECOP seal and why is it a guarantee for the patient?
The GECOP seal (Spanish Group of Peritoneal Oncologic Surgery) is a group that was founded to research and develop peritoneal cancer surgery. This seal offers minimum guarantees to the patient, since he/she will be treated by highly qualified surgeons. It is also supported by the SEOQ (Spanish Society of Surgical Oncology).