Incidental Cancer in Colectomy Specimens From Patients With Familial Adenomatous Polyposis

Colectomy is life-saving in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) because cancer development is inevitable in individuals with this disease. In this study, we aimed to determine the incidence of incidental malignancy in surgical specimens from patients who underwent colectomy for FAP. The files of patients diagnosed with FAP who underwent surgery in our clinic between 2010 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. Definitive surgery was performed in patients with histopathological malignancy identified in colonoscopic biopsies in the preoperative period, while prophylactic surgery was performed in patients without malignancy. The incidence of incidental malignancy in histopathological specimens from patients who underwent prophylactic colectomy was determined. Prophylactic colectomy should be performed in patients with FAP, as colorectal cancer transformation is inevitable in these individuals. The possibility of incidental cancer identified via histopathological analysis of colectomy specimens should be kept in mind in these patients.