This study was performed by a team led by Professor Pei-Wu Yu. The research article will be published on April 14, 2008 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
There is an ongoing debate on the deleterious effects of CO2 on tumor cell behavior. Some authors showed an increase in cell proliferation and tumor growth and others found beneficial effects of CO2 exposition in vitro and in animal studies.
In the view of the authors, the extracellular pH differed significantly during CO2 versus helium exposure and it decreased very sharply with the insufflated pressure. The extracellular and intracellular pH was an important regulator of cell functions, such as ATP production, cell cycle, intracellular signaling and apoptosis. It is likely that all these changes influence the favorability of tumor-cell implantation at the time of laparoscopic surgery.
The role of peritoneal microenvironment in tumor-cell growth awaits further studies and looks for the safest approach to laparoscopic oncologic surgery.-World Journal of Gastroenterology
