Implicating anaesthesia and the perioperative period in cancer recurrence and metastasis

Abstract

Cancer, currently the leading cause of death in the population aged less than 85 years, poses a significant global disease burden and is anticipated to continue to increase in incidence in both developed and developing nations. A substantial proportion of cancers are amenable to surgery, with more than 60% of patients undergoing tumour resection. Up to 80% of patients will receive anaesthesia for diagnostic, therapeutic or palliative intervention. Alarmingly, retrospective studies have implicated surgical stress in disease progression that is predominantly characterised by metastatic disease—the primary cause of cancer-associated mortality. Our understanding of the mechanisms of surgical str..