Objective To summarize the development of surgical treatment of rectal cancer.Method Reviewed the domestic and foreign literatures on surgical methods for rectal cancer.Results The first real surgery for rectal cancer was performed by LisFrance in 1826. Because the early understanding of rectal cancer and its development was not clear, the operation effect was poor, and the postoperative recurrence rate was high. It was not until 1908, when Dr. Miles proposed the classic abdominoperineal resection (APR), that the recurrence of rectal cancer improved significantly. In the 20th century, there also appeared Hartmann, Dixon, Bacon, Parks, and other sphincter-preserving operations, among which Dixon surgery was the most influential. Dixon surgery had changed the focus of rectal cancer treatment from radical APR to more sphincter-preserving surgery. With the emergence of stapler, the introduction of concepts such as total mesorectal excision (TME) and circumferric resection margins (CRM), and the promotion of laparoscopic technology, resection and anastomosis of rectal cancer had a lower location, less surgical trauma, better postoperative quality of life, and higher survival rate. Modern rectal cancer surgery was gradually developing to precision and minimally invasive. Following TME, transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME) and natural orifice specimen extraction surgery (NOSES) had given a new meaning to the operation of rectal cancer.Conclusions With the in-depth understanding of the occurrence, development, recurrence, and metastasis of rectal cancer, surgical methods of rectal cancer are constantly developing and improving. The introduction of new concepts and surgical procedures is accompanied by controversy and doubt, which promotes the improvement of the treatment level of rectal cancer.

Citation： LI Mengqi, CHEN Hongsheng, WEI Jiufeng. The development of surgical methods for rectal cancer. CHINESE JOURNAL OF BASES AND CLINICS IN GENERAL SURGERY, 2021, 28(8): 1114-1120. doi: 10.7507/1007-9424.202010102 Copy