Laparoscopy in Colon and Rectal Surgery Following the large Cost study released in May, a major step was taken in colorectal surgery.  The result of this study proved that laparoscopic colon surgery is technically more difficult but its therapeutic role in colon cancer is not different from open surgery.  Laparoscopic surgery, in turn, has far fewer side effects than open surgery, including less postoperative pain as well as less wound infection and respiratory infections in laparoscopic surgery.