New Combined Laparoscopy and Colonoscopy Procedure May Avoid Need for Major SurgeryA small number of patients diagnosed with polyps in their large intestine have extensive or difficult-to-remove polyps, such as those that are flattened against the colon wall or in hard-to-reach places. As with all polyps that may develop into malignant cancers, they must be removed. Unlike regular polyps, extensive or difficult-to-reach polyps have, until now, necessitated open surgery with a lengthy recovery time. Now, an experimental procedure, laparoscopic surgery combined with carbon-dioxide assisted colonoscopy, allows most patients to return home in less than a day -- a potential advantage over traditional open surgery, which requires a three-to-seven-day hospital stay. The new procedure was developed and offered exclusively in the New York area by colon and rectal surgeons at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.