MSSP574: THE TOP 25 MOST INFLUENTIAL LANDMARK ARTICLES IN SURGERY FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF COLORECTAL CANCER THAT EVERY SURGICAL TRAINEE AND EDUCATOR SHOULD KNOW
Dana M Poloni, DO1; Christina Monaco Poloni, DO2; Fred Kobylarz, MD1; Rosmi Thomas, DO2; Pamela Burgess, MD1; Andrew Schlussel, DO1; 1Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center; 2Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Objective: Access to digital literature has become increasingly convenient with surgical residents and fellows able to read peer-reviewed articles on their mobile devices and tablets in order to rapidly expand their knowledge base. The saturation of data, however, can be overwhelming to the trainee who must independently sort which articles are the most influential for the foundation of their surgical training. We therefore sought to create a collection of the top 25 landmark peer-reviewed original studies in the management of colorectal surgery in the last 25 years to guide residency programs, educators and trainees.
Methods: A Web of Science Citation Index search was queried in February 2023 in accordance with previously published protocol. The search engine period was limited to 25 years (January 1st, 1998 to January 1st, 2023). The terms “Colon Cancer” and “Rectal Cancer” were input within the reference search. Results were restricted to journal articles written in English. Only articles tagged with “Surgery”, “Oncology”, “General Internal Medicine” and “Gastroenterology and Hepatology” within the Web of Science categorical list were considered. The subsequent list of the top 25 most cited publications were obtained. Next, a citation density score was collected, representing the total number of citations within the past 10 years for each of the respective articles. The final list of publications were arranged in descending order by their citation density score and reference the total number of times the article had been cited.
Results: The search yielded 25,000+ articles and the top 25 articles are displayed in Table 1. Total citations for each individual article ranged from 305 to 1124. The mean density score was 17.6. Annals of Surgery represented the most published articles at 36%, followed by British Journal of Surgery (20%) and Diseases of the Colon and Rectum (16%).
Conclusion: This review provides a collection of the top 25 most cited original publications in the field of colorectal surgery in the last 25 years. The management of colorectal cancer has evolved significantly over the past century with the advancement of chemotherapeutic drugs, radiotherapy regimens and targeted pharmaceuticals paired with the advent of minimally invasive surgical techniques which has led to decreased morbidity and increased life expectancy in those affected by this disease. We believe this report serves as a solid foundation and educational guide of peer-reviewed literature for surgical trainees and their educators in regards to contemporary surgical management of colorectal cancer.