Alright, let me describe the study:
Subjects: People with colorectal cancer, all about to have their colon's surgically removed.
Fast track intervention: "The fast track protocol included no preoperative mechanical bowel
irrigation, immediate oral alimentation and earlier ambulation exercise
post-operation." Basically, they did not clean out their bowels, they
fed them immediately, and they got them up and walking sooner than
normal. The cleaning and lack of feeding are normally done to avoid
infection, but take more time. In this case, the idea was to compare
this faster method against the normal methods to see what happens.
Results: the fast track method helped patients recover
bowel function sooner, allowed them to have liquids sooner, got them
discharged from the hospital sooner, and have less complications.
So in conclusion, this study indicates that colorectal
cancer should be dealt with as quickly and efficiently as any assembly
line process. However, based on what I've seen with prostate cancer
survivors, where the surgery is getting exceedingly efficient, this
method might provide better medical outcomes (and so should definitely
be used if these improvements are true), but they need to be careful
that in their rush to cure the disease, they don't forget that THERE'S A
HUMAN THERE YOU'RE CUTTING INTO WHO HAS FEELINGS AND IS SCARED SHITLESS
(LITERALLY) THAT YOU'RE REMOVING PARTS OF THEIR ORGANS!
Colorectal Dis. 2011 Oct 11. doi: 10.1111/j.1463-1318.2011.02855.x. [Epub ahead of print]
No comments:
Post a Comment