Laparoscopy-assisted resection of an appendiceal mucinous cystadenoma

We present a 48-year-old man with a complaint of dull right-lower abdominal pain who was diagnosed with mucocele of the appendix. He underwent laparoscopy-assisted resection of the tumor. In the procedure, the entire right colon was freed from the retroperitoneal structures without rupturing the tumor; and ileocecal resection and anastomosis were performed extracorporeally. The pathological diagnosis of the tumor was mucinous cystadenoma of the appendix, measuring 9.0 cm 8.0 cm 4.0 cm. The postoperative course was uneventful, and he had no recurrent disease at a 2-year follow up. When resecting an appendiceal mucinous tumor laparoscopically, it is essential (1) to keep the tumor intact during manipulation, and to use a wound-protecting device when delivering the lesion; (2) to consider the extent of tumor resection with a negative surgical margin as well as prophylactic lymph node dissection in cases of suspected adenocarcinoma, even though the oncological adequacy of the laparoscopic procedure for carcinoma remains to be elucidated; and (3) to check whether any mucinous fluid has accumulated in the abdominal cavity, which represents an indication for open surgery.