Peritoneal tumour service

The Christie is one of 2 national centres in the UK that, since 2002, have specialised in assessing and treating appendiceal tumours. This is a rare condition which affects 1 to 2 in a million patients a year. This group includes low-grade appendiceal mucinous neoplasms (LAMN), pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP), appendiceal adenocarcinomas and appendix goblet cell adenocarcinomas. By performing a combination of cytoreductive surgery and heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC), patients with LAMN, PMP and those with malignant appendiceal tumours, 86% and 64% survive (respectively) for 6 years following surgery.

In 2010, The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) also approved cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC for peritoneal metastases from colorectal cancer. Following this, the numbers of referrals escalated with an audited dramatic improvement in outcome. Our data indicates that patients in this group can expect a 37% chance of survival at 6 years, compared to an average survival of 36 months prior to the use of this technique.

Over the past 20 years, we have gained valuable knowledge, skills and experience to improve outcomes for all of our patients receiving this treatment. The unit performs around 175 cytoreductions a year and the team consists of 9 specialist consultant surgeons and 4 clinical nurse specialists. We are proud to have treatment outcomes that are comparable with the best reported internationally. You can see our up-to-date data in our CPOC annual report.

If you would like to make a referral, please email to the-christie.cpocreferrals@nhs.net

You can also read some of our peritoneal patient stories - see what Steve Farrow, Becky Maskill and Katie Blackwood had to say about being a patient at the Colorectal and Peritoneal Oncology Centre at The Christie.