Advances in Minimally Invasive Colorectal Surgery: Laparoscopy, Robotic and NOSE Approach

Minimally invasive colorectal surgery has rapidly evolved, blending robotic platforms, natural orifice specimen extraction (NOSE), and novel anastomosis methods to reduce operative trauma and accelerate recovery. Despite these advances, variation persists in surgical uptake, safety profiles, and procedural standardization across healthcare settings. Current literature highlights the promise of robotic-assisted surgery in improving precision and ergonomics, while emerging strategies like NOSE and modified intracorporeal anastomoses aim to minimize incision size and postoperative morbidity. However, questions remain regarding reproducibility, long-term outcomes, learning curves, and the interplay between innovation and training across institutions of differing resources. Gaps persist in comparative data on cost-effectiveness, patient selection, and perioperative protocols, limiting consensus on optimal approaches.

This Research Topic aims to consolidate evidence on advanced minimally invasive colectomy techniques, with a particular focus on robotic innovations, NOSE, and alternative anastomosis strategies. It seeks to explore how these novel methods influence patient safety, technical feasibility, learning trajectories, and health system performance. The goal is to foster a comprehensive evaluation of emerging operative paradigms and encourage studies that balance technical sophistication with accessibility and standardization. By bringing together surgeons, researchers, and innovators, this collection intends to define practical frameworks for integrating next-generation techniques into routine surgical care.

To gather further insights into surgical innovation and implementation in colectomy, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Comparative outcomes of robotic versus laparoscopic colectomy;
• Safety and learning curves for NOSE and modified anastomosis approaches;
• Workflow optimization and training models in minimally invasive colorectal surgery;
• Patient-centered outcomes, including pain, recovery, and quality of life metrics;
• Institutional and economic factors influencing adoption and dissemination;
• Risk assessment and mitigation strategies for novel extraction and anastomosis methods;
• Advances in simulation-based education and competency assessment.

Submissions may include, but are not limited to, original research, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, technical reports, and clinical case studies.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Minimally Invasive Colectomy, Robotic Colorectal Surgery, Natural Orifice Specimen Extraction, NOSE, Novel Anastomosis Techniques, Surgical Innovation, Learning Curve, Safety and Feasibility, Operative Outcomes, Workflow Optimization, Cost-Effectiveness

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.