Resection of cancer of the body and tail of the pancreas.
OBJECTIVE
To report our results of resection of cancer in the body and tail of the pancreas and review the literature.


METHODS
Thirteen patients with a median age of 62 years with cancer of the body and/or tail of the pancreas. The diagnosis was made by ultrasonography, computed tomography, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and angiography. Eleven patients had distal or subtotal pancreatectomy and two patients total pancreatectomy. The surgical procedure included extensive dissection of lymph nodes and the connective tissue in the peripancreatic region. Main outcome measures were postoperative morbidity and mortality, median and 5-year survival rates.


RESULTS
Ten of the resections were considered to be curative. Postoperative complications occurred in seven patients and one patient died in the postoperative period. The median survival time of operative survivors was 392 days. Two patients survived five years, and one was alive ten years after surgery. Eight patients died of recurrence.


CONCLUSIONS
Long-term survival may be achieved in a quarter of the resectable patients.
Department of Surgical Gastroenterology, Herlev Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. flbu@herlevhosp.kbhamt.dk
Flemming
F
Burcharth
Jesper
J
Trillingsgaard
Soren D
SD
Olsen
Flemming
F
Moesgaard
Birgitte
B
Federspiel
Jan R
JR
Struckmann
D000368:Aged; D021441:Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D010180:Pancreatectomy / Q000379:methods; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D016019:Survival Analysis