en bloc resection
Pronunciation: ahn blahk ree-SEK-shun
A surgical technique that removes a spinal tumor and surrounding tissue as one intact piece to achieve wide margins.
Full Definition
En bloc resection is a specialized surgical technique used primarily for spinal tumor removal, where the tumor and a margin of surrounding healthy tissue are removed as a single, intact specimen. This approach is most commonly employed for primary malignant bone tumors such as chordomas, sarcomas, and some aggressive benign tumors. The procedure often requires extensive surgical exposure, vertebral body reconstruction, and spinal stabilization. En bloc resection aims to achieve wide oncologic margins to reduce local recurrence rates, though it carries higher surgical morbidity compared to intralesional tumor removal.
Usage
Usage note: Italicize 'en bloc' as it is a French term; specify reconstruction method used; distinguish from intralesional approaches.
In Context
- "En bloc resection of the L3 vertebral body was performed for the metastatic renal cell carcinoma." — operative report
- "The chordoma was treated with en bloc resection to achieve wide surgical margins." — tumor board presentation