The research in colorectal surgery focuses mainly on colorectal cancer, functional disorders, proctology, diverticulosis and peritoneal carcinomatosis.
The main fields of research:
Research group
Wilhelm Graf MD, PhD, Professor
Urban Karlbom, MD, PhD, Associate Professor
Joakim Folkesson, MD, PhD
Helgi Birgisson, MD, PhD, Associate Professor
Helene Siilin, MD, PhD
Filip Sköldberg, MD, PhD
Åsa Collin, MD, PhD student
Peter Moberger, MD, PhD student
Lana Ghanipour, MD, PhD
Konstantinos Tsimogannis, MD, PhD
Peter Cashin, MD, PhD
Malin Enblad, MD, PhD student
The department of colorectal surgery in Uppsala has a long tradition in the research of colorectal cancer. We have been involved in and organized multi-institutional trials in adjuvant treatment in colorectal cancer. Many of those trials have been published in well-known journals and there is still a lot of research ongoing among those patients included in the trials. We are looking for late adverse effects to adjuvant treatment (both radiotherapy and chemotherapy) in patients treated for colorectal cancer. We are also involved in several trials finding out the best way of giving adjuvant treatment in rectal cancer as well as how to combine radiotherapy and chemotherapy in rectal cancer treatment as well as how to use chemotherapy in treatment of patients with colonic cancer. Furthermore we are involved in several trials regarding the palliative care of patients with colorectal cancer.
Another branch in our colorectal cancer research is to find predictive tests and prognostic variables in patients treated for colorectal cancer. We paritcipate in a cooperation with Umeå university, of biobanking tumour tissue and blood from cance patients (U-CAN http://www.u-can.uu.se/?languageId=1). We have a strong link to the human protein research project, (HPR project; http://www.proteinatlas.org/) at Uppsala University and the Science of life labarotorium (http://www.scilifelab.se/) involved in finding good prognostic markers.
In the Uppsala-Örebro health-care region there is a quality control register for colorectal cancer surgery. Based upon these data and also the national quality control register for rectal cancer we have used this registration for several epidemiological studies showing the need of good pathology, good surgery and also good patient care. Also those registers are valuable to evaluate volumes in the treatment of cancer.
Another important topic is screening for colorectal cancer. Although the most evidence based screening tool is fecal occult blood testing, this has not been accepted as standard of care in Sweden. Therefore we are investigating other screening modalities like evaluating examination of DNA or tumor markers in the stools or to implement as a randomized trial exploring screening with colonoscopy.
We have also been involved in several important trials regarding surgical technique in colorectal cancer treatment. This includes a trial of preoperative bowel prep in colorectal cancer, a randomized trial regarding the use of covering stomas in rectal cancer surgery and also the use of different staplers.
A cooperation and research together with clinical pathologists and radiologist are also an integral part of our research.
Dissertations on the subject from our institution:
- Ghanipour, Lana, Colorectal Cancer: Aspects of Heredity, Prognosis and Tumour Markers, 2014
- Hosseinali Khani, Maziar, Rectal Cancer: Surgical Strategies and Histopathological Aspects, 2011
- Wallin, Ulrik, Cancer of the Colon and Rectum: Prognostic Factors and Early Detection, 2011
- Birgisson, Helgi, Cancer of the Colon and Rectum: Population Based Survival Analysis and Study on Adverse Effects of Radiation Therapy for Rectal Cancer, 2006
- Folkesson, Joakim, Rectal Cancer: Can the Results be Further Improved?, 2006
- Jestin, Pia Colorectal Cancer: Audit and Health Economy in Colorectal Cancer Surgery in a Defined Swedish Population, 2005
- Dafnis, George, Colonoscopy: Introduction and development, completion rates, complications and cancer detection, 2001
- Dahlberg, Michael, Rectal cancer: Aspects of surgery and radiotherapy,1999
- Kressner, Ulf, Prognostic markers in colorectal cancer: aspects of proliferation, tumour stroma and genetic changes,1997
- Lindmark, Gudrun, Perioperative predictors of tumor stage and prognosis in colorectal adenocarcinoma,1992
- Graf, Wilhelm, Adjuvant chemotheraphy for colorectal cancer: a clinical and experimental study,1992
- Enblad, Per, Adenomas and adenocarcinomas of the rectum: studies of survival rates, tumour marker antigens and nuclear DNA content, 1987
- Påhlman, Lars, Rectal carcinoma: an evaluation of the local recurrence rate, surgery for cure, staging and perioperative radiotherapy 1985
We have a long tradition in research in both incontinence and constipation. We have specialist nurses performing rectal sensibility and biofeedaback treatment. We have adopted a modern surgical techniques like sacral nerv stimulation, gracily plasty and STARR.
Dissertations on the subject from our institution:
- Danielson, Johan, Anorectal Malformations: Long-term outcome and aspects of secondary treatment. 2015
- Franck-Larsson, Karin, Gastrointestinal Manifestations and Pathophysiological Mechanisms in Systemic Sclerosis, 2010
- Laurell, Helena, Acute Abdominal Pain, 2006
- Lundin, Erik, Slow Transit Constipation: Aspects of Diagnosis and Treatment, 2005
- Österberg, Asbjörn, Faecal incontinence: Aspects of diagnosis and treatment, 1999
- Karlbom, Urban, Obstructed defecation: aspects of diagnosis and treatment in constipated patients,1997
Our main interest has been the treatment of patients with fistulas but also patients with haemorrhoids. Large randomized trials have been run regarding the surgical techniques in haemorrhoid surgery and fistula treatment. There are ongoing trials to try to explain and understand how a fistula in anus appears and how this should be treated.
Dissertations on the subject from our institution:
Dissertations on the subject from our institution:
We have had a long interest in the treatment on diverticulosis and diverticulitis. Two PhD students have published their theses. In those reports we have shown the long-term risk for patients with diverticulosis to develop colorectal cancer. We have also shown that no antibiotic treatment is necessary in the management of mild diverticulitis.
Dissertations on the subject from our institution:
The department of Colorectal surgery at Akademiska sjukhuset, Uppsala University Hospital started in the 1990’s with curative treatments for patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) and was the first institution in the Nordic countries to offer treatment with cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).
Read more about the PC-group and their dissertations.
