title: Surgical therapy of exocrine pancreatic carcinoma--results at an academic teaching hospital and evaluation of prognostic factors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Pancreatic cancer is among the top five cancer related death causes in countries like the US and Germany. Many studies have shown favorable results of pancreatic carcinoma resection at high-volume hospitals. It was the aim of this study to compare the results of pancreatic resection of exocrine pancreatic carcinoma at an academic teaching hospital with those of international centers for pancreatic surgery and to identify prognostic factors for survival.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety-eight patients with exocrine pancreatic carcinoma were treated at our hospital, 42 of those underwent a resection. The data was collected from the patient files and statistically analyzed. A complete follow-up was reached.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The resection rate was 42.9%, of which 83.3% were R0-resections. Mortality was 2.4%, morbidity 31%. Median survival after R0-resection was 14 months and 57.1% of the patients received adjuvant chemotherapy with gemcitabine. The performed surgical procedure and adjuvant chemotherapy were identified as independent determinants of long-term survival.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study shows that morbidity, mortality and survival rates reported in studies from international centers for pancreatic surgery can be reached at an academic teaching hospital as well. Adjuvant chemotherapy prolongs survival.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Freiburg University Hospital, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.
authors.forename: Maximilian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Broese
authors.forename: Ludwig
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hoy
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jaehne
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009017:Morbidity; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D011379:Prognosis