Resective operations for biliary carcinoma

Records of 25 consecutive patients who underwent resection for proximal bile duct tumor (3 extended right hepatic lobectomies, 6 left hepatic lobectomies, 16 skeletonization resections) and records of 21 patients who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy for distal bile duct carcinoma were reviewed to assess the value of resective therapy. The operative mortality rate for patients with resected proximal bile duct tumor was 4 per cent (0 per cent for liver resection) and that of distal bile duct tumor, 4.6 per cent. The 3- and 5-year actuarial survival rates for patients with proximal bile duct tumor were 44 per cent and 35 per cent, respectively; all except one patient eventually died of disease. Survival was better for patients who had curative resection (margins microscopically free of tumor). The 5-year actuarial survival rate for patients with distal bile duct carcinoma was 58±12 (SE) per cent, with patients who had negative nodes surviving longer than patients with positive nodes. When major hepatic resection and pancreatoduodenectomy can be performed in selected patients with low operative mortality, patients with bile duct carcinoma should be assessed by an experienced hepatobiliary multidisciplinary group before a decision is made in favor of palliative, endoscopic, or percutaneous techniques because surgical resection appears to offer the best possible long-term survival and probably the best quality of palliation. This report is the basis of a paper read by R.L.R. at the 90th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Surgical Society, Sapporo, Japan, 1990     

Prognostic factors after pancreatoduodenectomy for distal bile duct cancer

Prognostic factors influencing long-term survival after radical resection for distal bile duct cancer have not been well established because of the rarity of this malignancy. The goal of this study was to identify main prognostic factors in patients undergoing pancreatoduodenectomy for distal bile duct carcinoma. A retrospective study consisting of 122 patients with distal bile duct cancer who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy in three major university hospitals was performed to identify the main prognostic factors. Major surgical complications occurred in 40 patients (32.8%), of whom eight died (6.6%) in the hospital. Overall actuarial survival (excluding hospital deaths) at 1-, 3-, and 5-year follow-up was 82.9, 49.4, and 32.7 per cent, respectively, with a median survival of 36 months. Univariate analysis showed that papillary tumor (P = 0.045), negative surgical margin (R0 resection, P = 0.005), earlier pT (P = 0.005), pTNM stage (P < 0.001), and absence of lymph node involvement (P < 0.0001) were significant predictors of survival. On multivariate analysis, only lymph node metastasis was shown to be an independent prognostic factor of survival (P = 0.036). Lymph node involvement was the most important survival predictor after a Whipple resection in patients with distal cholangiocarcinoma.     

Portal vein resection for hilar cholangiocarcinoma

Hilar cholangiocarcinoma remains a difficult challenge for the surgeon. Achieving negative surgical margins when resecting this relatively uncommon tumor is technically demanding as a result of the close proximity of the bile duct bifurcation to the vascular inflow of the liver. A recent advance in surgical treatment is the addition of portal vein resection to the procedure. Resection of the portal vein increases the number of patients offered a potentially curative approach but is technically more difficult and may increase the risk of the procedure. This study reviews the results of portal vein resection for hilar cholangiocarcinoma. Between 1998 and 2005, 60 patients underwent potentially curative resections of hilar cholangiocarcinoma. Mean patient age was 64 +/- 12 years (range, 24-85 years). Liver resections performed along with biliary resection included 49 trisegmentectomies (37 right, 12 left) and 10 lobectomies (8 left, 2 right). One patient had only the bile duct resected. Four patients also had simultaneous pancreaticoduodenectomy performed. Twenty-six patients required portal vein resection and reconstruction to achieve negative margins, 3 of which also required reconstruction of the hepatic artery. Operative mortality was 8 per cent with an overall complication rate of 40 per cent. Patients who underwent portal vein resection had an operative mortality of 4 per cent, which was not different from the 12 per cent mortality in patients who did not undergo portal vein resection (P = 0.39). There was no difference in actuarial patient survival between patients who underwent portal vein resection and those who did not (5-year survival 39 per cent vs. 41 per cent, P = not significant). Negative margins were achieved in 80 per cent of cases and were associated with improved survival (P < 0.01). Five-year actuarial survival in patients undergoing resection with negative margins was 45 per cent. There was no difference in margin status or long-term survival between those patients who underwent portal vein resection and those who did not. Only negative margin status was associated with improved survival by multivariate analysis. Portal vein resection for hilar cholangiocarcinoma is safe and allows a chance for long-term survival in otherwise unresectable patients.     

Combined portal vein and liver resection for carcinoma of the biliary tract

Twenty-nine patients with advanced carcinoma of the bile duct or gallbladder underwent combined portal vein and liver resection. Segmental excision of the portal vein was performed in 16 cases and wedge resection of the vessel wall in 13. The operative mortality rate was 17 per cent. The median survival for the 24 patients who left hospital was 19.8 months. Actuarial survival rates at 1, 3 and 5 years for all 29 patients were 48 per cent, 29 per cent, and 6 per cent respectively, whereas the median survival for 46 patients with unresectable carcinoma was 3 months and the 1 and 3-year actuarial survival rates were 13 per cent and zero respectively. This difference in survival times between patients undergoing hepatectomy with portal vein resection and those with unresectable carcinoma were statistically significant (P less than 0.01). Combined portal vein and liver resection is recommended as a reasonable surgical approach in selected patients with advanced carcinoma of the biliary tract.     

Is major hepatectomy with pancreatoduodenectomy justified for advanced biliary malignancy?

Background/Purpose Major hepatectomy with concomitant pancreatoduodenectomy (M-HPD) is usually indicated for the resection of diffuse bile duct cancer or advanced gallbladder cancer. This is the only procedure that can potentially cure such advanced cancers, so both a low mortality rate and long-term survival could potentially justify performing this procedure. Methods Between 1990 and 2005, the morbidity, mortality, and long-term survival of 26 patients with advanced biliary tract carcinoma 14 with diffuse bile duct cancer, 9 with advanced gallbladder cancer, and 3 with hilar bile duct cancer, who underwent hepatopancreatoduodectomy (HPD) were reviewed and analyzed. Results The overall morbidity and mortality rates were 30.8% and 0%, respectively. Postoperative infectious complications occurred in 6 patients (23.0%). The 5-year survival rate of the 14 patients with diffuse bile duct cancer who underwent HPD was 51.9%, while the 5-year survival rate in the 12 of these patients who underwent M-HPD was 61.4%. Patients with diffuse bile duct cancer without residual tumor and those without lymph node metastasis had 5-year survival rates of 68.6% and 80%, respectively. Thirty-three percent (2 of 6) of the patients who underwent M-HPD for advanced gallbladder cancer survived for more than 5 years. Conclusions Preoperative biliary drainage, portal embolization, complete external drainage of pancreatic juice, reduction of intraoperative bleeding, and prevention of bacterial colonization of bile may enable the incidence of mortality and hepatic failure to approach zero in patients who undergo HPD. Surgeons should strive for complete clearance of the tumor with a negative surgical margin to achieve long-term survival when performing M-HPD.     

Aggressive surgery for carcinoma of the gallbladder

Forty patients with gallbladder cancer were admitted to our institution in a 9-year period. For two patients with Nevin's stage I carcinoma who had undergone cholecystectomy, resection of the lower portion of the fourth and fifth segments of the liver and extrahepatic bile duct with dissection of lymph nodes was carried out as a second-stage operation. Thirteen patients with stage V carcinoma underwent extensive aggressive operations. Operative procedures comprised various types of liver resection with cholecystectomy and extrahepatic bile duct resection and wide lymph node dissection in all cases, portal vein reconstruction in 3, pancreatoduodenectomy in 3, partial colectomy in 3, and right nephrectomy in 1. The operative and in-hospital mortality rates were 0%. Two patients with stage I carcinoma are both doing well. Two patients with stage V carcinoma who underwent an extended operation are working without recurrence 7 years 8 months and 8 years 5 months after surgery. From our experiences we believe that long-term survival may be achieved by aggressive surgery if it is suitably indicated.     

Surgical experience with adenocarcinoma of the ampulla of Vater

Between 1968 and 1982, 13 patients in this study had a pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD), one patient had a total pancreatectomy, two had an ampullectomy, and one patient had a choledochoduodenostomy for neoplasia of the ampulla of Vater. The operative mortality was zero, and the 5-year actuarial survival rate for the 16 resected patients was 52.6 per cent. From a review of the literature, the authors evaluated 1,894 PDs and 61 ampullectomies. The operative mortality rate was 14 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively. The 5-year survival rate was 21 per cent for PD and 23 per cent for ampullectomy. However, 187 patients with negative lymph nodes who underwent PD had a 5-year survival rate of 39 per cent. PD resection is fully warranted for ampullary tumors. Ampullectomy should be reserved only for high surgical risk patients.     

Experience with resection of primary hepatic malignancy

Our experience with hepatic resection for 106 primary hepatic malignancies has been summarized as a part of a total experience with 411 hepatic resections for various indications. The operative mortality rate (death within a month) was 8.5 per cent in treating primary hepatic malignancy, which is significantly higher than that of treating hepatic metastases (0 of 123 resections). Overall operative mortality of 411 hepatic resection was 3.2 per cent. A high operative risk was noted in patients with gross cirrhosis, trauma, abscess, and large malignant tumors. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates of patients with primary hepatic malignancy were 68.5 per cent, 45.1 per cent, and 31.9 per cent, respectively. Survival rates of patients with fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma were significantly higher than those of patients with nonfibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma. Eighteen patients survived more than 5 years after hepatic resection, 14 of whom had been treated by trisegmentectomy. The most extensive partial hepatectomy, such as right and left trisegmentectomy rather than extended lobectomies, should be used to remove massive tumors with adequate tumor-free margins.     

Radical resection of hilar bile duct carcinoma and predictors of survival

BACKGROUND: Patients with carcinoma of the main hepatic duct have a poor prognosis. This study attempted to identify clinicopathological predictors of survival after resection. METHODS: A retrospective review was performed of 114 patients who presented with hepatic ductal carcinoma between 1976 and 1998. Of the 114 patients, 98 had a radical resection, three underwent palliative resection and 13 were not treated surgically. Forty-six patients with stage IVA disease had microscopic tumour residue after resection. Of these, 28 patients were treated with radiotherapy and the remaining 18 had resection alone. RESULTS: The overall operative morbidity and mortality rates were 14 and 4 per cent respectively. The overall 5-year survival rate after resection was 28 per cent. Nineteen patients survived for more than 5 years, including ten with stage IVA disease. The main prognostic factors were performance status; jaundice; tumour location; gross appearance; histological grade; T, N and M categories in tumour node metastasis (TNM) classification; TNM stage; and residual tumour. Adjuvant radiotherapy, tumour extension into the hepatic ducts, histological grade, N and residual tumour were independent predictive factors by multivariate Cox analysis. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that radical resection provides the best survival rate for patients with hilar bile duct carcinoma. For patients with stage IVA disease, following complete gross resection radiotherapy improved treatment outcome.     

One hundred and eleven liver resections for hilar bile duct cancer

A positive correlation between absence of residual tumor at resection margins and long-term survival in the treatment of hilar bile duct carcinoma has encouraged some surgeons to use a more radical approach, including liver/portal vein resection and combined pancreatoduodenectomy. However, if liver resection is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, it may not produce any overall benefit. This review was undertaken in an attempt to determine whether liver resection is a safe procedure and whether if has any beneficial effect over that of local bile duct excision alone, in terms of achieving curative resection and long-term survival. The records of 151 patients with hilar bile duct carcinoma surgically treated between June 1989 and December 1997 at the Asan Medical Center, Seoul, were retrospectively analyzed. Surgical resection was possible in 128 patients. The remaining 23 patients had surgical palliative drainage. Local bile duct excision alone was performed in 17 patients. Liver resection for tumor extending to secondary bile ducts or hepatic parenchyma was performed in 111 patients; portal vein resection was necessary in 29 of these 111 patients (26.1%) and pancreatoduodenectomy was combined in 18 patients (16.2%). Seven patients died during hospitalization after liver resection, an operative mortality of 6.3%. Margins of bile duct resection were free of tumor on histologic examination in 4 of the 17 local bile duct excisions, but in 86 of the 111 liver resections. The cumulative survival rate after local bile duct excision was 85.7% at 1 year, 42.9% at 2 years, 21.4% at 3 years, and 0% at 4 years. However, the survival rate after liver resection (excluding operative mortality) was 97.1% at 1 year, 72.8% at 2 years, 55.3% at 3 years, and 24.0% at 5 years. Survival and the percentage of patients with tumor-free resection margins after liver resection were superior to those after local bile duct excision. Resection of hilar bile duct carcinoma offers long-term survival only when surgery is aggressive and includes liver resection. Received for publication on July 2, 1998; accepted on July 5, 1998     

Carcinoma of the main hepatic duct junction: indications, operative morbidity and mortality, and long-term survival

Carcinoma of the main hepatic duct junction tends to spread extensively along the hepatic ducts into the liver parenchyma. Therefore extensive resection of the bile ducts combined with hepatic resection is the procedure of choice. Between January 1973 and April 1989, 25 of 50 patients with this type of carcinoma underwent resection, a resectability rate of 50%. One patient died of staphylococcal sepsis on the postoperative day 42 after right trisegmentectomy and resection of the bile ducts, a hospital death rate of 4%. Twenty-four patients were discharged from the hospital. The 5-year actuarial survival rate calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method was 19%. Four patients lived longer than 5 years after surgery; the longest survival was 9 years after right trisegmentectomy and resection of the bile ducts. These four patients had clear margins at the resected bile ducts. This article was designed to clarify the point at issue by presenting our results in terms of indications, operative morbidity and mortality, and long-term survival.     

Periampullary adenocarcinoma: analysis of 5-year survivors.

OBJECTIVE: This single-institution experience retrospectively reviews the outcomes in a group of patients treated 5 or more years ago by pancreaticoduodenectomy for periampullary adenocarcinoma. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: Controversy exists regarding the benefit of resection for periampullary adenocarcinoma, particularly for pancreatic tumors. Many series report only Kaplan-Meier actuarial 5-year survival rates. There are believed to be discrepancies between the actuarial 5-year survival data and the actual 5-year survival rates. METHODS: From April 1970 through May 1992, 242 patients underwent pancreaticoduodenal resection for periampullary adenocarcinoma at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Follow-up was complete through May 1997. All pathology specimens were reviewed and categorized. Actual 5-year survival rates were calculated. The demographic, intraoperative, pathologic, and postoperative features of patients surviving > or =5 years were compared with those of patients who survived <5 years. RESULTS: Of the 242 patients with resected periampullary adenocarcinoma, 149 (62%) were pancreatic primaries, 46 (19%) arose in the ampulla, 30 (12%) were distal bile duct cancers, and 17 (7%) were duodenal cancers. There was a 5.3% operative mortality rate during the 22 years of the review, with a 2% operative mortality rate in the last 100 patients. There were 58 5-year survivors, 28 7-year survivors, and 7 10-year survivors. The tumor-specific 5-year actual survival rates were pancreatic 15%, ampullary 39%, distal bile duct 27%, and duodenal 59%. When compared with patients who did not survive 5 years, the 5-year survivors had a significantly higher percentage of well-differentiated tumors (14% vs. 4%; p = 0.02) and higher incidences of negative resection margins (98% vs. 73%, p < 0.0001) and negative nodal status (62% vs. 31%, p < 0.0001). The tumor-specific 10-year actuarial survival rates were pancreatic 5%, ampullary 25%, distal bile duct 21%, and duodenal 59%. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with periampullary adenocarcinoma treated by pancreaticoduodenectomy, those with duodenal adenocarcinoma are most likely to survive long term. Five-year survival is less likely for patients with ampullary, distal bile duct, and pancreatic primaries, in declining order. Resection margin status, resected lymph node status, and degree of tumor differentiation also significantly influence long-term outcome. Particularly for patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma, 5-year survival is not equated with cure, because many patients die of recurrent disease >5 years after resection.     

Perineural invasion has a negative impact on survival of patients with gallbladder carcinoma

BACKGROUND: The clinical significance of perineural invasion of gallbladder carcinoma remains unclear. The aim of this study was to elucidate the incidence and mode of perineural invasion of gallbladder carcinoma and clarify its prognostic significance. METHODS: A clinicopathological study was conducted on 68 patients who underwent attempted curative resection for gallbladder carcinoma. According to the pathological tumour node metastasis (pTNM) classification of the Union Internacional Contra la Cancrum, there were five (7 per cent), nine (13 per cent), 20 (29 per cent) and 34 (50 per cent) patients with pT1, pT2, pT3 and pT4 disease respectively. Twenty patients (29 per cent) had pM1 disease, including involved para-aortic nodes, liver metastases and localized dissemination. RESULTS: The overall incidence of perineural invasion was 71 per cent (48 of 68 patients). Forty-four (96 per cent) of 46 patients with extrahepatic bile duct invasion had perineural invasion. Although several histological factors were associated with perineural invasion, multivariate analysis demonstrated that extrahepatic bile duct invasion was the only significant factor correlated with perineural invasion (odds ratio 99.0, P < 0.001). The perineural invasion index, defined as the ratio of the number of involved nerves to the total number of nerves examined, was significantly higher at the centre than in the proximal and distal parts of the tumour in the 46 patients with extrahepatic bile duct invasion (P < 0.001). The 5-year survival rate for patients with perineural invasion was significantly lower than that for patients with no invasion (7 versus 72 per cent; P < 0.001). Cox proportional hazard analysis identified perineural invasion (relative risk (RR) 5.3, P < 0.001) and lymph node metastasis (RR 2.5, P = 0.008) as significant independent prognostic factors. CONCLUSION: Perineural invasion is common in advanced gallbladder carcinoma and has a significant negative impact on patient survival.     

Five-year survivors after aggressive surgery for stage IV gallbladder cancer

Abstract. Purpose: To describe 5-year survivors after radical surgery for stage IV gallbladder cancer and to determine the characteristics leading to potential long-term survival. Methods: Of 59 patients undergoing radical resection for stage IV disease between 1979 and 1994, 6 patients who have survived for more than 5 years were followed up. Results: Three patients had developed obstuctive jaundice due to involvement of the hepatic hilum, but the other three had not. The jaundiced patients had remarkable tumor spread over the bile duct and right hepatic artery within the hepatoduodenal ligament. However, the proper and left hepatic arteries and the portal trunk and its left branch were free from tumor involvement. The nonjaundiced patients had N1 or N2 lymph node metastasis. However, none underwent bile duct resection or pancreatoduodenectomy to establish radical lymphadenectomy. Conclusions: Selected patients with stage IV gallbladder cancer may be candidates for 5-year survival when the primary tumor is fairly localized even if it forms a large mass and involves neighboring organs including the hepatic duct, lymph node metastasis is limited to N1 and N2 except for the celiac and superior mesenteric nodes and is less infiltrative, and distant metastasis including that in the paraaortic area is absent. Received: January 9, 2001 / Accepted: June 18, 2001     

Liver resection for metastatic colorectal cancer

From 1975 to 1985, 60 patients with isolated hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer were treated by 17 right trisegmentectomies, five left trisegmentectomies, 20 right lobectomies, seven left lobectomies, eight left lateral segmentectomies, and three nonanatomic wedge resections. The 1-month operative mortality rate was 0%. One- to 5-year actuarial survival rates of the 60 patients were 95%, 72%, 53%, 45%, and 45%, respectively. The survival rate after liver resection was the same when solitary lesions were compared with multiple lesions. However, none of the seven patients with four or more lesions survived 3 years. The interval after colorectal resection did not influence the survival rate after liver resection, and survival rates did not differ statistically when synchronous metastases were compared with metachronous tumors. A significant survival advantage of patients with Dukes' B primary lesions was noted when compared with Dukes' C and D lesions. The pattern of tumor recurrence after liver resection appeared to be systemic rather than hepatic. The patients who received systemic chemotherapy before clinical evidence of tumor recurrence after liver resection survived longer than those who did not.     

Prognostic factors after pancreatoduodenectomy with extended lymphadenectomy for distal bile duct cancer.

BACKGROUND: Since 1995, we have been performing pancreatoduodenectomy with regional and para-aortic lymph node dissection for patients with distal bile duct cancer. Prognostic indicators after extended lymphadenectomy have not been fully understood. HYPOTHESIS: Pancreatoduodenectomy with extended lymphadenectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy is the treatment of choice for patients with distal bile duct cancer. DESIGN: In a retrospective study, univariate and multivariate models were used to analyze the effect of patient demographics, tumor characteristics, and treatment factors on long-term survival. SETTING: Oita Medical University and its affiliated hospitals in Japan. PATIENTS: From 1995 to 1999, 27 patients with distal bile duct cancer underwent pancreatoduodenectomy with extended lymphadenectomy. In 9 patients fluorouracil (500 mg/d) was infused continuously for 14 days after surgery as adjuvant chemotherapy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Clinicopathologic characteristics and long-term results. RESULTS: In 6 patients (22%) major surgical complications occurred including 1 in-hospital death (3.7%). For 26 patients, the survival rates were 65% for 1 year and 37% for 3 and 5 years. Univariate analysis found that the absence of lymph node metastasis, no more than 2 involved nodes, and negative resection margins were predictors of survival. Multivariate analysis with a Cox proportional hazards regression model revealed that favorable factors for survival included up to 2 positive nodes, negative resection margins, and the use of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with up to 2 positive lymph nodes had a more favorable prognosis than that of other patients. We recommend pancreatoduodenectomy with extended lymphadenectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy for the treatment of patients with distal bile duct cancer.     

Management of cancer of the bile duct

Tumors of the bile duct are uncommon. Most patients will present with a syndrome of obstructive jaundice, but in a few patients the tumor can mimic benign disease of the biliary tract. Cholangiography continues to be the basis of diagnosis and gives important information for a decision on therapy. Histologic diagnosis is helpful when available, although frequently difficult to obtain and not always possible. The overall prognosis for these patients remains poor. Currently, a multidisciplinary approach is required to select for each patient the best therapy with the lowest morbidity and mortality. It should include a surgeon, gastrointestinal endoscopist, interventional radiologist, and radiotherapist. The prognosis for a patient appears to be related to the tumor's location, resectability, and, in our experience, differentiation. Therapy should be tailored to each patient based on location of the tumor, extent of the disease, condition of the patient, expertise available in each institution, and morbidity and mortality associated with each procedure. At the Lahey Clinic, the resectability rate for bile duct tumor is currently 25 per cent. Resection is more frequently possible for tumor of the distal bile duct and can result in a five-year survival rate of up to 30 per cent. For patients with unresectable distal tumor at the time of operation, a proximal hepaticojejunostomy is the palliative procedure of choice. If nonresectability of a distal tumor is determined before operation, the decision to proceed with an endoscopic placement of a stent versus surgical hepaticojejunostomy or placement of a T tube needs to be an individual one. Although five-year survival for tumor of the proximal bile duct is anecdotal, those patients who undergo resection have the longest survival and may have better palliation than those who undergo strictly palliative, nonresective procedures. To warrant exploration for resection of tumor of the proximal bile duct, careful patient selection is required, and the morbidity and mortality of operation must be minimized. An increasing role of percutaneous transhepatic techniques of decompression of the biliary tract is expected as they improve and gain wider acceptance. They are the procedures of choice in very high-risk surgical patients or in patients determined before operation to have unresectable disease. Improvement in the survival of patients with cancer of the bile duct probably depends on development of better adjuvant therapy, such as new techniques of radiation therapy and new modalities of chemotherapy, in association with surgery or with a percutaneous or endoscopic intubation technique.     

Extended hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma

The results of extended hepatectomy in 25 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma performed over a 16 year period have been reviewed, analysed and compared with those of 144 patients who underwent lesser liver resection. Five left and 20 right extended hepatectomies were performed for tumours ranging from 3 to 20 cm in diameter. Seventeen (68 per cent) of the patients had non-cirrhotic livers. The major postoperative complications were: haemorrhage in five cases, major bile duct injury in three, subphrenic abscess in two, liver failure in one and wound dehiscence in one. The 30-day (operative) mortality rate was 12 per cent and the median survival duration, including operative mortality, was 9.7 (range 0.2-32.1) months. The survival rate was 46 per cent at 1 year, 33 per cent at 2 years and 22 per cent at 3 years. The morbidity, mortality and survival data of extended hepatectomy were comparable with the results of lesser hepatic resections for hepatocellular carcinoma. We conclude that extended hepatectomy is a worthwhile operation for large hepatocellular carcinomas and a viable alternative to liver transplantation.     

Experience with 647 consecutive tumors of the duodenum, ampulla, head of the pancreas, and distal common bile duct.

Between 1946 and 1987, 647 patients with periampullary tumors were diagnosed at the University of Chicago Medical Center. These included 549 tumors located in the head of the pancreas, 40 in the distal common bile duct, 29 in the duodenum, and 29 at the ampulla of Vater. Ninety-eight per cent of all tumors were adenocarcinoma, with 93% of the remaining being duodenal carcinoid or sarcoma. Operability rate ranged from 81% to 97%, according to the tumor location and histologic type. A combination of laparotomy, biopsy, and bypass was performed in 433 patients and only one survived 5 years (0.2%). Resectability rate ranged from 16.5% for pancreatic adenocarcinoma to 89.3% for ampullary tumors. Of the 133 resections, 80 were pancreatoduodenectomies, 29 total pancreatectomies, 7 duodenectomies, 2 gastrectomies, 8 common bile duct resections, and 7 local excisions. Overall 19% of patients who underwent radical resection died in the immediate postoperative period, although mortality has decreased to 5% since 1981. Mortality was 20% after a standard pancreatoduodenectomy and 24.1% after a total pancreatectomy. Five-year actuarial survival rates, including perioperative deaths, were 8.8%, 20%, and 32% for pancreatic, duodenal, and ampullary adenocarcinoma, respectively. One half of patients with sarcoma and two-thirds with carcinoid of the duodenum survived 5 years. No patient with distal common bile duct adenocarcinoma achieved a 5-year survival rate. Multivariate analysis on all patients operated on (n = 566) revealed that the 5-year survival rate was significantly related to intent of operation (palliative 0.2%, curative 12%; p less than 0.001), histologic type (adenocarcinoma 2%, carcinoid and sarcoma 31%; p less than 0.0001), and site (ampullary and duodenal 21%, biliary and pancreatic 0.9%; p less than 0.001). A second multivariate analysis, evaluating only those patients with adenocarcinoma who survived the perioperative period of the radical resection (n = 97) analyzed the influence of tumor size and differentiation, lymphatic, capillary, and perineural microinvasion, lymph node status, and type of procedure (pancreatoduodenectomy vs. total pancreatectomy) on 5-year survival. None of these additional variables was significantly associated with long-term survival rates. In addition we evaluated the presence of local or distant recurrence after resection by analyzing the findings from all autopsies performed on these patients (n = 49): 29.4% of patients died with local recurrence alone, 23.5% with distant recurrence alone, and 47.1% had both local and distant recurrences.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Hepatic resection for primary and metastatic tumors

Thirty-four hepatic resections were performed on 33 patients. These included 4 trisegmentectomies, 14 lobectomies, 7 segmentectomies, and 9 wedge resections. Twenty patients had metastatic colorectal cancer, 4 had a primary liver tumor, 2 had giant cavernous hemangioma, 1 had metastatic leiomyosarcoma, 5 had various benign lesions including focal nodular hyperplasia, and 1 patient had resection for trauma. Operative morbidity included four subphrenic abscesses, one bile leak, one bile duct injury, one case of cholestasis, and one case of phlebitis. There were no operative deaths. The median survival of the patients with metastatic colorectal cancer was 40 months, and the 5-year actuarial survival rate was 35 percent. Survival rates were not significantly different between patients with a solitary metastasis and those with multiple lesions and was not influenced by size of the metastases. However, survival was significantly better in patients whose primary colorectal lesion was Dukes' B as compared with those whose lesion was Dukes' C. The results indicate that liver resection can be performed safely with acceptable morbidity and improved long-term survival.