Acute abdomen in the era of immune checkpoints inhibitors – what the surgeon needs to know: A narrative review

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Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have been approved for the treatment of a variety of malignancies. Immune-related adverse events are rare and might affect a lot of different organs including the intestines. Enterocolitis is a common complication characterised by symptoms such as diarrhoea, abdominal pain, and vomiting. In rare circumstances, bowel perforation, obstruction, or even toxic megacolon might appear. The proper therapeutic management of these conditions is based on case reports or case series. Conservative management is the standard of care in the case of ileus, however, the safety of performing a bowel anastomosis has not been answered yet. This study aims to raise awareness among the medical community, and specifically surgeons, regarding the intestinal complications of ICI, as the uprising administration of these targeted therapies makes this knowledge necessary.