Indications for surgical treatment of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma with lymph node metastases

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: The postoperative outcome of patients who have intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma with lymph node metastases is extremely poor, and the indications for surgery for such patients have yet to be clearly established. METHODS: The demographic and clinical characteristics of 133 patients who underwent lymph node dissection during hepatic resection of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis identified three independent prognostic factors: intrahepatic metastasis, nodal involvement, and tumor at the margin of resection. Of the patients with tumor-free surgical margins, none of the 24 patients who had both lymph node metastases and intrahepatic metastases survived for 3 years. In contrast, the survival rates for the 23 patients who had lymph node metastases associated with a solitary tumor were 35% at 3 years and 26% at 5 years. CONCLUSIONS: Surgery alone cannot prolong survival when both lymph node metastases and intrahepatic metastases are present, while surgery may provide a chance for long-term survival in some patients who have lymph node metastases associated with a solitary intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma tumor.