Dr. Paris Tekkis

The ultimate surgical challenge in rectal cancer was broadcast worldwide through AIS Channel

First, the past, present and future of the total mesorectal excision were discussed by its creator, Richard Heald. Then a series of lectures given by Mariana Berho, Paris Tekkis and Steven Wexner focused on hot topics: Do the results of TME vary by technique?, Do the clinical outcomes vary with technique? and Attempts to reduce anastomotic leaks. A block of videos was broadcast where the surgical approaches to TME were evaluated. Brendan Moran talked about the open approach and its place in current practice.  Yves Panis talked about the laparoscopic TME and its advantages. Jim Khan was in charge of demonstrating the robotic TME, showing how an accurate dissection was performed. And Antonio Lacy explained all the essentials, tips and tricks to perform a taTME, which is the most innovative and least invasive approach. The most interesting part of the event was having great surgeons perform simultaneous and live open, laparoscopic, robotic and transanal TME procedures. This dynamics made it possible to compare the benefits, limitations and pitfalls of the current approaches in front of a huge audience of surgeons from all over the world. It was an amazing experience. Once the specimens had been resected the quality of the dissection was assessed by Mariana Berho and Nicholas West. Finally the panel of experts held a discussion, giving their views and recommendations. Regarding the statistics of the event, the AIS Channel Winter Event 2016 was again hugely successful. It was seen live by more than 25,000 viewers from 102 countries. Interaction with the global audience was once again very powerful. Moreover, these amazing figures will increase once the event is published on AIS for permanent viewing in the next few days.