[Anterior resection for rectal carcinoma in an anemic Jehovah's Witness].

Anterior resection is accepted treatment for tumors of the middle rectum, with mortality less than 5%. Since such surgery involves blood loss, blood transfusion is regarded as essential. We report a 69-year old anemic Jehovah's Witness who had a bleeding rectal tumor but who refused blood transfusion, despite a hemoglobin level of 4.8 g/dl. Anterior resection of the tumor was successfully performed without substantial blood loss. Her hemoglobin level was 5.8 g/dl on discharge. Jehovah's Witnesses do not oppose medical treatment nor do they practice faith healing. Instead, they seek good medical care but accept only proven medical alternatives to blood transfusions. Physicians, world-wide, are now successfully performing major surgery of all types on both adult and minor Witnesses. Due to their success in the use of alternatives, over 50 hospitals in North America, Europe and Australia have established "bloodless-surgery" centers to serve not only Jehovah's Witnesses but also a growing number of other patients who wish to avoid risks associated with blood transfusion.