Laparoscopic staging for hepatobiliary carcinoma

For gallbladder carcinoma and extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, staging laparoscopy is high yield and should be performed routinely. For HCC and metastatic colon cancer, a more selective approach is warranted, reserving staging laparoscopy for patients in whom unresectable disease is more likely to be identified.The exact role of LUS in these patients is not yet determined but likely extends the advantages of staging laparoscopy.Staging laparoscopy spares patients with unresectable disease from nontherapeutic laparotomy, decreasing their recovery time and, it is hoped, allowing earlier initiation of nonsurgical therapy.     

Pain management of patients with unresectable peripancreatic carcinoma

In patients with unresectable peripancreatic carcinoma, pain is generally treated with pain medication or with a celiac plexus blockade. Radiotherapy has also been reported to reduce pain. The efficacy of these treatment modalities is still under discussion. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of the various types of pain management on patients who underwent palliative bypass surgery for unresectable peripancreatic carcinoma. During the period January 1995 to December 1998 a series of 98 patients underwent palliative bypass surgery, mostly for unresectable disease found during exploration. Patients were divided into three groups: palliative bypass surgery (BP), palliative bypass surgery with an intraoperative celiac plexus blockade (CPB), and palliative bypass surgery with or without celiac plexus blockade followed by high-dose conformal radiotherapy (RT). Radiotherapy was performed only in selected patients with locally advanced disease and without metastases, implying a better prognosis of the last group. The pain medication consumption, pain medication-free survival, hospital-free survival, and overall survival were analyzed. The preoperative consumption of pain medication was significantly higher in the CPB group than in the BP or RT group. The postoperative consumption of pain medication in the CPB, BP, and RT groups increased during follow-up from 15%, 17%, and 13% before surgery to 52%, 57%, and 46%, respectively, at three-fourths of the survival time (NS). This increase in consumption of pain medication was not different in the three groups. In the RT group the median pain medication-free survival was significantly longer than in the BP or CPB group (9.3 vs. 3.1 and 3.3 months; p = 0.02). The median hospital-free survival and median overall survival were significantly longer in the RT group than in the CPB group (10.3 vs. 6.8 months, p = 0.01; and 7.1 vs. 10.8 months, p = 0.01). Celiac plexus blockade as pain management did not result in an increase of the pain medication-free survival or overall survival. Therefore a positive effect of a celiac plexus blockade on pain could not be confirmed in the present study. Radiotherapy resulted in increased pain-medication survival, hospital-free survival, and overall survival compared to celiac plexus blockade. These effects are probably partly related to patient selection.     

胰腺癌的术前腹腔镜分期

胰腺癌是一种恶性程度极高的肿瘤，年发病率与年死亡率几乎相等，总五年生存率小于5％。在西方发达国家，胰腺癌在各癌症病死率中居前五位。而在我国，其发病率也在逐年增加。近年来尽管有关胰腺癌的放射影像、血清肿瘤标记物、肿瘤分子病理、手术技术、放疗设备和化疗药物等各方面的进展喜人，但其预后依旧很差。     

Laparoscopic cholecystjejunostomy as palliation for obstructive jaundice in inoperable carcinoma of pancreas

Summary Malignant obstructive jaundice can be palliated by either surgical bypass, which has the advantage of long-term patency, or by stent placement, which has the advantage of initial lower morbidity and mortality. We describe a technique, laparoscopic cholecystjejunostomy, which has the advantage of both. We predict that laparoscopic surgery, which has already had a major impact on biliary stone surgery, will also have a major impact on interventional endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography.     

The value of minimal access surgery in the staging of patients with potentially resectable peripancreatic malignancy.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine if an endosurgical approach that mimics open exploration would improve the accuracy of simple diagnostic laparoscopy. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA; Most patients with peripancreatic malignancy are found at exploration to be unable to undergo resection. Laparoscopy has been suggested as a sensitive method for detecting metastatic disease in this group of patients. However, the ability to assess resectability with simple diagnostic laparoscopy remains relatively low (<40%). METHODS: Between December 1992 and August 1994, 115 patients with radiologically resectable peripancreatic tumors underwent extended laparoscopy before undergoing a planned curative resection. This technique required assessment of the peritoneal cavity, liver, lesser sac, porta hepatis, duodenum, transverse mesocolon, and celiac and portal vessels. RESULTS: Sixty male and 55 female patients were included in the current study. The pancreatic head was involved in 74 patients (64%), followed by the body in 21 (18%), tail in 8 (7%), ampulla in 8 (7%), duodenum in 3 (3%), and distal bile duct in 1 (1%). An abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan was performed for all patients before laparoscopy, ultrasonography for 74 patients (64%), endoscopic retrograde choleangiopancreatography for 59 patients (51%), and mesenteric angiography for 9 patients (8%). Pneumoperitoneum was established successfully in all but 2 cases (98%). A complete examination of 108 patients was performed. Sixty-seven patients were considered to have resectable disease, and 61 resections were performed. Laparoscopy failed to identify hepatic metastases in 5 patients and portal venous encasement in 1 patient. Unresectable disease was identified in 41 patients. Hepatic metastases were observed in 20 patients, mesenteric vascular encasement in 14, extrapancreatic/peritoneal involvement in 16, and celiac or portal lymphatic metastases in 8. There were no intraoperative or postoperative complications related to the laparoscopic procedure. The positive predictive index, negative predictive index, and accuracy of laparoscopy were 100%, 91%, and 94%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that extended laparoscopy is accurate and safe and makes exploration unnecessary in many patients with potentially resectable peripancreatic malignancy. In this series, 76% of patients explored were resected, compared with the authors' experience between 1983 and 1993 of 35%. The authors believe that laparoscopy is an important component in the staging of this group of patients and should be performed before exploration.     

Current utility of staging laparoscopy for pancreatic and peripancreatic neoplasms

BACKGROUND: The routine use of staging laparoscopy in patients with radiographically resectable pancreatic and peripancreatic neoplasms remains controversial. STUDY DESIGN: We reviewed a prospective database that identified 1,045 patients who underwent staging laparoscopy for radiographically resectable pancreatic or peripancreatic tumors between 1995 and 2005. Radiographic resectability was determined by review of radiographic reports, surgeons' notes, and cross-sectional imaging studies. Factors were assessed for their association with the laparoscopic identification of radiographically occult unresectable disease. Recursive partitioning was used to build a decision tree, with laparoscopic identification of unresectable disease as the outcomes, including only patients since 1999 (modern imaging) and factors available preoperatively. RESULTS: Unresectable disease was identified laparoscopically in 145 of the 1,045 radiographically resectable patients (14%). Factors associated with radiographically occult unresectable disease included the time period of the study, whether imaging was performed at our institution (internal versus external imaging), primary site, histology, weight loss, and jaundice. Primary site (pancreatic versus nonpancreatic) was identified as the strongest predictor of yield. In patients with nonpancreatic tumors, the yield of laparoscopy was 4%. In patients with pancreatic tumors, the yield of laparoscopy was 14% overall, but was 8.4% in patients with internal imaging versus 17% in patients with external imaging (p < 0.01). This higher-risk subgroup was partitioned by the presence of weight loss, then by primary site within the pancreas. CONCLUSIONS: During the time period of this study, the yield of staging laparoscopy decreased and exceeded 10% only for patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. When high-quality cross-sectional imaging reveals no evidence of unresectable disease, routine staging laparoscopy may not be warranted for pancreatic or peripancreatic tumors other than presumed pancreatic adenocarcinoma.     

Laparoscopic devine exclusion gastroenterostomy for the palliation of unresectable and obstructing gastric carcinoma

The Devine exclusion gastroenterostomy is an effective procedure for the relief of gastric outlet obstruction in patients with unresectable carcinoma of the gastric antrum. We report on the successful laparoscopic application of this technique in two male patients aged 61 and 76 years with unresectable and obstructing antral gastric cancer. The operating time was 90 minutes for each patient, and the postoperative hospital stay was 3 and 4 days, respectively. There were no delays in gastric emptying and no recurrences of gastric outlet obstruction until the time of death, 3.5 and 9 months postoperatively, respectively. The laparoscopic approach to a Devine exclusion gastroenterostomy is a safe and effective minimally invasive approach to the palliation of unresectable obstructing gastric carcinoma.     

Lymphangiography in staging patients with carcinoma of the bladder

Pedal lymphangiography was used in the evaluation of 28 patients with carcinoma of the bladder. Correlation of the lymphangiogram with histologic examination of the surgically excised pelvic and para-aortic nodes was less than 50 per cent and suggests limited applicability of this diagnostic technique in staging bladder cancer.     

Laparoscopic staging in gallbladder cancer

PURPOSE: Laparoscopy is beneficial in the staging of pancreatic and upper gastrointestinal malignancies but its role in gallbladder cancer has not been investigated. We evaluated the role of laparoscopy in the staging of gallbladder cancer. Methods: From 1989 through 2001, 91 patients with gallbladder cancer, without any evidence of metastatic disease on imaging (ultrasound and/or computed tomographic scan), underwent staging laparoscopy. Peritoneal and surface liver metastases were looked for and assessment of local spread was done if possible. Assessment was based on visual impression and biopsies were not obtained routinely. RESULTS: At laparoscopy, 34 (37%) patients had disseminated disease in the form of liver and/or peritoneal deposits; no further surgery was performed in 29 of these patients while 5 patients underwent surgical bypass procedures. Liver metastases were missed at laparoscopy in 2 patients and were subsequently found at laparotomy. Assessment of the gallbladder mass was possible in 33 (36%) patients, 6 of these were found to have extensive local disease and did not undergo any further surgery. Laparoscopic staging, thus avoided further surgery in 35 (38%) patients. Of the 51 patients without metastatic disease, who underwent laparotomy, 11 were found to have nonresectable locally advanced disease while 1 had liver metastases, which were missed at laparoscopy; 7 underwent bypass procedures only; 21 underwent simple cholecystectomy and extended cholecystectomy was done in 11 patients. The resectability rate (number of resections/operations) in patients undergoing laparoscopic staging was 57% (32/56) as compared with 43% (142/328) in those who did not undergo laparoscopy. CONCLUSIONS: Staging laparoscopy in patients with gallbladder cancer detected liver and peritoneal metastases that were missed on imaging. It reduced the number of unnecessary surgical explorations and improved the resectability rate.     

Preoperative staging by multidetector-row computed tomography in patients with rectal carcinoma

BACKGROUND: Multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT, or multi-slice CT) has been introduced in 2000. So far, there has been no published study on this modality in patients with rectal carcinoma. METHODS: Twenty patients with rectal carcinoma were preoperatively examined by MDCT and conventional CT (CCT). Diagnostic accuracies of both modalities were compared regarding the evaluation of depth of tumor invasion (Tis/T1/T2, T3, T4) and lymph node metastasis based on the pathologic findings. RESULTS: Although CCT detected a tumor in 13 (65%) of 20 patients, MDCT revealed a tumor in all 20 patients (P = 0.004). Regarding depth of tumor invasion, the concordance rate was significantly higher for MDCT (20/20: 100%) than for CCT (12 of 20: 60%; P = 0.002). Regarding lymph node metastasis, the overall accuracy was 70.0% in CCT, and also 70.0% in MDCT. CONCLUSIONS: MDCT was superior to CCT in the evaluation of depth of tumor invasion, but was equal to CCT in the evaluation of lymph node metastasis.     

Laparoscopic liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with cirrhosis

Liver resection for patients with cirrhosis remains a challenging operation. The presence of thrombocytopenia and portal hypertension could lead to severe bleeding during hepatectomy. The enthusiasm of laparoscopic hepatectomy has been growing and many studies have reported their initial favorable results for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The advancement in technology, better understanding of the use of pneumoperitoneum pressure and more experience accumulated make laparoscopic liver resection for patients with cirrhosis possible. Favorable outcome may be achieved if the patients are carefully selected and carried out in high volume centers.     

Laparoscopic gastro- and hepaticojejunostomy for palliation of pancreatic cancer

Background: Most patients presenting with pancreatic cancer are irresectable at the time the diagnosis is made. Therefore, they are in need of palliative treatment that can guarantee minimal morbidity, mortality, and hospital stay. To address this need, we designed a study to test the feasibility of laparoscopic gastroenterostomy and hepaticojejunostomy and to compare their results with those achieved with open techniques. Methods: We performed a case control study of a new concept in laparoscopic palliation based on the findings of preoperative imaging and diagnostic laparoscopy. Laparoscopic side-to-side gastroenterostomy and end-to-side hepaticojejunostomy (Roux-en-Y) were done in irresectable cases. Of 14 patients who underwent laparoscopic palliation, three had a laparoscopic double bypass, seven had a gastroenterostomy, and four underwent staging laparoscopy only. The results were compared with a population of 14 matched patients who had conventional palliative procedures. Results: Postoperative morbidity was 7% vs 43% for laparoscopic and open palliation, respectively (p < 0.05). There were no mortalities in the laparoscopic group, as compared to 29% in the group who had open bypass surgery (p < 0.05). Postoperative hospital stay averaged 9 days in the laparoscopic group and 21 days in the open group (p < 0.06). Operating time tended to be shorter in the laparoscopic group (p < 0.25). Morphine derivatives were necessary for a significantly shorter period after laparoscopic surgery (p < 0.03). Conclusions: Our preliminary experience strongly suggests that laparoscopic palliation can reduce the three major drawbacks of open bypass surgery—i.e., high morbidity, high mortality, and long hospital stay. Received: 24 February 1999/Accepted: 13 May 1999     

Surgical palliation in patients with pancreatic cancer

Background The aim of palliative strategies in patients with pancreatic cancer is the relief of tumor-associated symptoms such as biliary and duodenal obstruction and tumor growth. Due to high mortality and morbidity rates of surgery, treatment of patients with advanced pancreatic cancer is mainly in the hand of gastroenterologists. Rationale In recent years, surgery of pancreatic cancer in specialized centres developed strongly, which makes it a viable option even in the treatment of advanced disease. Conclusion We advocate for an aggressive strategy in the treatment of pancreatic cancer with surgical exploration and tumor resection whenever possible.     

肝细胞癌合并肝硬化病人的腹腔镜射频消融治疗

目的探讨肝细胞癌合并肝硬化病人行腹腔镜射频消融(LRFA)治疗的可行性、安全性及疗效。方法2001年8月至2003年12月,25例肝细胞癌合并肝硬化病人在全麻下进行了LRFA治疗。男19例,女6例,平均年龄(52·2±11·9)岁。术前经超声、螺旋CT或MRI等检查共发现瘤体38个,平均肿瘤直径(3·8±1·1)cm。肿瘤均位于肝脏表面、肝左外叶或邻近胆囊等空腔脏器。肝功能均为ChildA或B级。合并慢性结石性胆囊炎3例,糖尿病2例,凝血功能障碍5例。术中行腹腔镜超声检查及病理活检。结果25例病人腹腔镜及术中超声检查共发现瘤体41个。所有病例均顺利完成LRFA治疗,同时行胆囊切除术5例。平均手术时间(72·5±27·6)min。未出现出血、胆道、胃肠道及膈肌损伤等并发症。术后1个月螺旋CT扫描证实,肿瘤完全坏死率达100%。随访6~32个月(平均18个月),1例发现肝内新病灶,3例射频治疗部位复发,l例死于肿瘤复发及肝功能衰竭。结论肝细胞癌合并肝硬化病人行LRFA治疗是安全可行的,可提高肝细胞癌射频消融治疗效果,减少并发症。     

The role of FDG-PET scan in staging patients with nonsmall cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND: To assess the role of flourodeoxyglucose-positron-emission tomography (FDG-PET) scan in staging patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS: We prospectively studied 400 patients with NSCLC. Each patient underwent a computed tomography (CT) scan of the chest and upper abdomen, other conventional staging studies and had a FDG-PET scan within 1 month before surgery. All suspicious N2 lymph nodes by either chest CT or by FDG-PET scan were biopsied. Patients that were N2 and M1 negative underwent pulmonary resection and complete thoracic lymphadenectomy. RESULTS: The FDG-PET had a higher sensitivity (71% vs 43%, p < 0.001), positive predictive value (44% vs 31%, p < 0.001), negative predictive value (91% vs 84%, p = 0.006), and accuracy (76% vs 68%, p = 0.037) than CT scan for N2 lymph nodes. Similarly, FDG-PET had a higher sensitivity (67% vs 41%, p < 0.001), but lower specificity (78% vs 88%, p = 0.009) than CT scan for N1 lymph nodes. FDG-PET led to unnecessary mediastinoscopy in 38 patients. FDG-PET was most commonly falsely negative in the subcarinal (#7) station and the aortopulmonary window lymph node (#5, #6) stations. It accurately upstaged 28 patients (7%) with unsuspected metastasis and it accurately downstaged 23 patients (6%). CONCLUSIONS:The FDG-PET scan allows for improved patient selection. It more accurately stages the mediastinum, however there are many false positives lymph nodes and it may be more likely to miss N2 disease in the #5, #6, and #7 stations. A positive FDG-PET scan means a tissue biopsy is indicated in that location.     

年轻人结直肠癌早期诊断和临床分期的分子标记

目的探讨与年轻人结直肠癌(CRC)早期诊断和临床分期密切相关的分子标记。方法运用免疫组织化学和流式细胞学方法对63例年轻结直肠癌和对应的16例腺瘤组织中β-连接素(β-catenin)、hMSH2、hMLH1和P53蛋白表达和DNA倍性进行检测,结合肿瘤的Dukes分期,分析它们之间的差异与相关性。结果在63例年轻CRC中,肿瘤组织的DNA倍性与患者的Dukes分期有显著的相关性(P<0.05),非整倍体DNA含量的肿瘤,80.8%发生在DukesC或D期的CRC。P53蛋白的过度表达(76.0%)也倾向于浸润晚期的肿瘤;而hMSH2或hMLH1蛋白丢失的肿瘤70.0%是浸润早期的CRC。在16例配对的年轻结直肠腺癌和腺瘤组织中,β-catenin和DNA错配修复(MMR)蛋白表达间差异无显著性意义(P>0.05),8例β-catenin核浆聚集的CRC中,其对应的腺瘤有5例同时出现β-catenin的核浆聚集;丢失了hMSH2或hMLH1蛋白的3例CRC,其对应的3例腺瘤均丢失相应MMR蛋白。结论β-catenin和MMR蛋白hMSH2,hMLH1可以作为年轻CRC早期诊断中较为理想的分子标记;而肿瘤的DNA倍性和P53蛋白表达是患者临床分期中有用的参考指标。