Abstract
Objective: To evaluate whether palliative colorectal stenting can serve as an effective initial intervention for malignant colonic obstruction in patients with unresectable colorectal cancer, stratified by prognostic indicators. Methods: In this single-center retrospective study, 32 patients who underwent palliative colorectal stenting between January 2017 and December 2023 were analyzed. The primary outcome was the resumption of oral intake. Secondary outcomes included improvement in the colorectal obstruction scoring system (CROSS), discharge status, adverse events, and potential impact on survival. Results: Oral intake was successfully resumed in 31 patients (96.9%). CROSS scores improved by at least one grade in all patients, and 30 patients (93.8%) achieved CROSS 4. Twenty-three patients (71.9%) were discharged. No early adverse events were observed. Two cases of late stent obstruction were successfully managed with additional interventions. Despite including patients with poor prognostic factors such as dementia and ascites, no patients died earlier than predicted by prognostic models. Conclusion: Palliative colorectal stenting demonstrated high efficacy and acceptable safety, and may serve as a useful initial intervention regardless of prognostic stratification.
