title: Pancreaticoduodenectomy for malignancies in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Malignant tumors of the common bile duct or of the pancreas head are uncommon in childhood [Perez EA, Gutierrez JC, Koniaris LG, Neville HL, Thompson WR, Sola JE. Malignant pancreatic tumors: incidence and outcome in 58 pediatric patients. J Pediatr Surg. 2009; Jan; 44 (1): 197-203]. With radical surgery being the standard cure for nonmetastatic diseases, pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is the best choice when the tumor is localized in the head of the pancreas, or in the lower portion of the common bile duct. The purpose of the present study is to describe five consecutive children managed by PD, and reviewing the particular aspects and results of this rare procedure in children.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 2007 and 2010, five patients (median age: 7 years) underwent PD for nonmetastatic malignant tumors. In two cases, PD was performed en bloc with a right hepatectomy in order to achieve the radical resection of a recurrent biliary sarcoma. Four patients benefited from a "pylorus-preserving" PD procedure. In two patients, resection of the portal vein and vascular reconstruction was performed, and in one case, an extended resection of the biliary ductal system was necessary.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All resection margins were clear. The postoperative course was uneventful, with no pancreatic or biliary leakage in all of the patients. Oral refeeding was achieved by the eighth postoperative day. In two cases, a late revision of pancreatic-jejunal anastomosis was performed because of mild steatorrea and a suspected anastomotic stricture. Two of the patients, who were subsequently operated on second hand, for biliary sarcoma, died from the recurrence; while three of the others, with pancreatic malignancies, are alive and well, with a good functional outcome.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Surgical resection is the treatment of choice for tumors of the pancreatic head area. In the absence of regional or metastatic extension, the radicality of primary intervention is associated with favorable outcomes. Good functionality results were observed after the PD was limited to the head of the pancreas and subject to pylorus-preserving techniques.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Transplantation Centre, Hepato-Biliary and Transplant Surgery Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: d'Ambrosio
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Transplantation Centre, Hepato-Biliary and Transplant Surgery Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: del Prete
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Transplantation Centre, Hepato-Biliary and Transplant Surgery Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Grimaldi
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Transplantation Centre, Hepato-Biliary and Transplant Surgery Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Arianna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bertocchini
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Hepato-Biliary Radiology Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lo Zupone
authors.affiliation: Department of Imaging, Hepato-Biliary Radiology Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Lidia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Monti
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Transplantation Centre, Hepato-Biliary and Transplant Surgery Unit, Bambino Gesù Childrens Hospital, Rome, Italy. Electronic address: deville@opbg.net.
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: de Ville de Goyet
mesh_terms: D018267:Carcinoma, Acinar Cell / Q000601:surgery*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003138:Common Bile Duct Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006498:Hepatectomy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000601:surgery; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D016577:Pancreaticoduodenectomy / Q000379:methods; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012208:Rhabdomyosarcoma / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Outcome; Pancreaticoduodenectomy; Pediatric malignancy; Portal vein reconstruction; Surgical indications