Colorectal doctors can perform polypectomies and local excisions during routine colonoscopies. They access early-stage cancers and colon polyps by inserting a long, flexible tube (colonoscope) into the colon via the rectum. Most polyps are harmless, but some can become cancer.

During a polypectomy, your colon cancer surgeon removes any polyps from the wall of the colon. As part of this local excision, the surgeon removes the cancer and a small amount of healthy surrounding tissue, called a margin.

During a colectomy, your surgeon removes all or part of the colon along with nearby lymph nodes:

• Segmented colon resection: This procedure, also called a hemicolectomy or partial colectomy, involves removing the part of the colon where the tumor is located. Surgeons then attach the remaining colon sections together.
• Total colectomy: Because this procedure removes the entire colon, doctors don’t do total colectomies unless there are problems in the areas of the colon that do not have cancer.

If tumors are blocking the colon, your doctor may recommend a diverting colostomy. During this procedure, the surgeon removes only the tumor. The surgeon does this by:

1. Making an incision above the section of the colon that has the tumor.
2. Attaching the top section of the colon to a surgically made opening in your abdomen (stoma).
3. Attaching a small bag to the stoma to collect stool.

Metastatic colon cancer is colon cancer that has spread beyond the colon to other organs, often the liver or lungs. We may recommend surgery to remove these liver or lung tumors, along with the colon cancer.

For these complex situations, our colorectal, gastrointestinal, and thoracic surgeons work closely together, sometimes during the same operation, to provide coordinated care. Our surgeons also partner with our medical oncologists to optimize the timing of surgeries with needed chemotherapy treatments.

You may also receive a hepatic artery infusion (HAI) pump during metastatic colon cancer surgery. These pumps are about the size of a hockey puck. They provide concentrated doses of chemotherapy directly to any metastatic colon cancers in the liver.

This treatment provides an additional option for patients who are not responding to traditional chemotherapy treatments. It can also prevent cancer recurrence (when cancer returns). Penn Medicine is the only medical center in the southeastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey area that offers hepatic artery infusion pumps.

Your doctor may recommend one or more systemic medications to treat cancer throughout your body. These drugs treat cancer in different ways.

Penn’s medical oncologists are experts at treating colon and similar GI cancers. This in-depth knowledge helps us recommend medicines that will destroy cancer cells while causing you less discomfort.

Medical oncology treatments include:

• Chemotherapy
• Immunotherapy
• Targeted therapy

As one of the nation’s largest centers dedicated to studying tumors of the digestive tract, we strive to expand treatment options for patients with all types and stages of colon cancer. Clinical trials may offer additional options for your treatment.

Metastatic colon cancer happens when colon cancer cells spread to areas outside the colon, such as the liver. At Penn Medicine, our specialists are known worldwide for their expertise in treating advanced colon cancer cases.

We offer:

• HIPEC (heated/hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy): Penn Medicine was one of the first centers in the southeastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey region to offer this specialized surgical procedure. It treats cancer that has spread to the abdominal cavity with a powerful dose of chemotherapy medicine.
• Advanced therapies for metastatic liver tumors: Our interventional radiologists use minimally invasive procedures, such as chemoembolization, to treat metastatic liver tumors while sparing nearby healthy tissues. We are the only center in the greater Philadelphia, Lancaster, and Princeton area to offer hepatic artery infusion pumps (a specialized type of surgical chemotherapy pump).