Significance of functional hepatic resection rate calculated using 3D CT/^(99m)Tc-galactosyl human serum albumin singlephoton emission computed tomography fusion imaging

AIM: To evaluate the usefulness of the functional hepatic resection rate(FHRR) calculated using 3D computed tomography(CT)/^(99m)Tc-galactosyl-human serum albumin(GSA) single-photon emission computed tomography(SPECT) fusion imaging for surgical decision making. METHODS: We enrolled 57 patients who underwent bi- or trisectionectomy at our institution between October 2013 and March 2015. Of these, 26 patients presented with hepatocellular carcinoma, 12 with hilar cholangiocarcinoma, six with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, four with liver metastasis, and nine with other diseases. All patients preoperatively underwent three-phase dynamic multidetector CT and ^(99m)Tc-GSA scintigraphy. We compared the parenchymal hepatic resection rate(PHRR) with the FHRR, which was defined as the resection volume counts per total liver volume counts on 3D CT/^(99m)Tc-GSA SPECT fusion images.RESULTS: In total, 50 patients underwent bisectionectomy and seven underwent trisectionectomy.Biliary reconstruction was performed in 15 patients, including hepatopancreatoduodenectomy in two. FHRR and PHRR were 38.6 ± 19.9 and 44.5 ± 16.0, respectively; FHRR was strongly correlated with PHRR. The regression coefficient for FHRR on PHRR was 1.16(P < 0.0001). The ratio of FHRR to PHRR for patients with preoperative therapies(transcatheter arterial chemoembolization, radiation, radiofrequency ablation, etc.), large tumors with a volume of > 1000 m L, and/or macroscopic vascular invasion was significantly smaller than that for patients without these factors(0.73 ± 0.19 vs 0.82 ± 0.18, P < 0.05). Postoperative hyperbilirubinemia was observed in six patients. Major morbidities(Clavien-Dindo grade ≥ 3) occurred in 17 patients(29.8%). There was no case of surgeryrelated death.CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that FHRR is an important deciding factor for major hepatectomy, because FHRR and PHRR may be discrepant owing to insufficient hepatic inflow and congestion in patients with preoperative therapies, macroscopic vascular invasion, and/or a tumor volume of > 1000 m L.

Hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma with portal vein tumor thrombus

Despite surgical removal of tumors with portal vein tumor thrombus(PVTT) in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC) patients, early recurrence tends to occur, and overall survival(OS) periods remain extremely short. The role that hepatectomy may play in long-term survival for HCC with PVTT has not been established. The operative mortality of hepatectomy for HCC with PVTT has also not been reviewed. Hence, we reviewed recent literature to assess these parameters. The OS of patients who received hepatectomy in conjunction with multidisciplinary treatment tended to be superior to that of patients who did not. Multidisciplinary treatments included the following: preoperative radiotherapy on PVTT; preoperative transarterial chemoembolization(TACE); subcutaneous administration of interferon-alpha(IFN-α) and intra-arterial infusion of 5-fluorouracil(5-FU) with infusion chemotherapy in the affected hepatic artery; cisplatin, doxorubicin and 5-FU locally administered in the portal vein; and subcutaneous injection of IFN-α, adjuvant chemotherapy(5-FU + Adriamycin) administration via the portal vein with postoperative TACE, percutaneous isolated hepatic perfusion and hepatic artery infusion and/or portal vein chemotherapy. The highest reported rate of operative mortality was 9.3%. In conclusion, hepatectomy for patients affected by HCC with PVTT is safe, has low mortality and might prolong survival in conjunction with multidisciplinary treatment.

Portal vein stenosis after pancreatectomy following neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy for pancreatic cancer

Extrahepatic portal vein (PV) stenosis has various causes, such as tumor encasement, pancreatitis and as a postsurgical complication. With regard to post-pancreaticoduodenectomy, intraoperative radiation therapy with/ without PV resection is reported to be associated with PV stenosis. However, there has been no report of PV stenosis after pancreatectomy following neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy (NACRT). Here we report the cases of three patients with PV stenosis after pancreatectomy and PV resection following gemcitabine-based NACRT for pancreatic cancer and their successful treatment with stent placement. We have performed NACRT in 18 patients with borderline resectable pancreatic cancer since 2005. Of the 15 patients who completed NACRT, nine had undergone pancreatectomy. Combined portal resection was performed in eight of the nine patients. We report here three patients with PV stenosis, and thus the ratio of post-operative PV stenosis in patients with PV resection following NACRT is 37.5% in this series. We encountered no case of PV stenosis among 22 patients operated with PV resection for pancreatobiliary cancer without NACRT during the same period. A relationship between PV stenosis and NACRT is suspected, but further investigation is required to determine whether NACRT has relevance to PV stenosis.

Functional transition:Inconsistently parallel to the increase in future liver remnant volume after preoperative portal vein embolization

BACKGROUND Preoperative portal vein embolization(PVE)is a widely used strategy to enable major hepatectomy in patients with insufficient liver remnant.PVE induces hypertrophy of the future liver remnant(FLR)and a shift of the functional reserve to the FLR.However,whether the increase of the FLR volume(FLRV)corresponds to the functional transition after PVE remains unclear.AIM To investigate the sequential relationship between the increase in FLRV and functional transition after preoperative PVE using 3-dimensional(3D)computed tomography(CT)and 99mTc-galactosyl-human serum albumin(99mTc-GSA)singlephoton emission computed tomography(SPECT)fusion images.METHODS Thirty-three patients who underwent major hepatectomy following PVE at the Department of Gastroenterological Surgery I,Hokkaido University Hospital between October 2013 and March 2018 were enrolled.Three-phase dynamic multidetector CT and 99mTc-GSA SPECT scintigraphy were performed at pre-PVE,and at 1 and 2 wk after PVE;3D 99mTc-GSA SPECT CT-fused images were constructed from the Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine data using 3D image analysis system.Functional FLRV(FFLRV)was defined as the total liver volume×(FLR volume counts/total liver volume counts)on the 3D 99m Tc-GSA SPECT CT-fused images.The calculated FFLRV was compared with FLRV.RESULTS FFLRV increased by a significantly larger extent than FLRV at 1 and 2 wk after PVE(P<0.01).The increase in FFLRV and FLRV was 55.1%±41.6%and 26.7%±17.8%(P<0.001),respectively,at 1 wk after PVE,and 64.2%±33.3%and 36.8%±18.9%(P<0.001),respectively,at 2 wk after PVE.In 3 of the 33 patients,FFLRV levels decreased below FLRV at 2 wk.One of the three patients showed rapidly progressive fatty changes in FLR.The biopsy at 4 wk after PVE showed macroand micro-vesicular steatosis of more than 40%,which improved to 10%.Radical resection was performed at 13 wk after PVE.The patient recovered uneventfully without any symptoms of pos-toperative liver failure.CONCLUSION The functional transition lagged behind the increase in FLRV after PVE in some cases.Evaluating both volume and function is needed to determine the optimal timing of hepatectomy after PVE.

Outcomes of reduction hepatectomy combined with postoperative multidisciplinary therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND The prognosis of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)that is not indicated for curative hepatectomy remains poor,despite advances in the treatment of HCC,including the development of tyrosine kinase inhibitors(TKIs).The outcomes of reduction hepatectomy and multidisciplinary postoperative treatment for advanced HCC that is not indicated for curative hepatectomy,including those of recently treated cases,should be investigated.AIM To examine the outcomes of combination treatment with reduction hepatectomy and multidisciplinary postoperative treatment for advanced HCC that is not indicated for curative hepatectomy.METHODS Thirty cases of advanced HCC that were not indicated for curative hepatectomy,in which reduction hepatectomy was performed between 2000 and 2018 at the Department of Gastroenterological Surgery I,Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine,were divided into postoperative complete remission(POCR)(+)and POCR(-)groups,depending on whether POCR of all evaluable lesions was achieved through postoperative treatment.The cases in the POCR(-)group were subdivided into POCR(-)TKI(+)and POCR(-)TKI(-)groups,depending on whether TKIs were administered postoperatively.RESULTS The 5-year overall survival rate and mean survival time(MST)after reduction hepatectomy were 15.7%and 28.40 mo,respectively,for all cases;37.5%and 56.55 mo,respectively,in the POCR(+)group;and 6.3%and 14.84 mo,respectively,in the POCR(-)group(P=0.0041).Tumor size,major vascular invasion,and the number of tumors in the remnant liver after the reduction hepatectomy were also found to be related to survival outcomes.The number of tumors in the remnant liver was the only factor that differed significantly between the POCR(+)and POCR(-)groups,and POCR was achieved significantly more frequently when≤3 tumors remained in the remnant liver(P=0.0025).The MST was 33.52 mo in the POCR(-)TKI(+)group,which was superior to the MST of 10.74 mo seen in the POCR(-)TKI(-)group(P=0.0473).CONCLUSION Reduction hepatectomy combined with multidisciplinary postoperative treatment for unresectable advanced HCC that was not indicated for curative hepatectomy was effective when POCR was achieved via multidisciplinary postoperative therapy.To achieve POCR,reduction hepatectomy should aim to ensure that≤3 tumors remain in the remnant liver.Even in cases in which POCR is not achieved,combined treatment with reduction hepatectomy and multidisciplinary therapy can improve survival outcomes when TKIs are administered.

Impact of comorbid renal dysfunction in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma on long-term outcomes after curative resection

BACKGROUND Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is one of the most common malignancies worldwide.However,the number of patients with chronic kidney disease(CKD)is on the rise because of the increase in lifestyle-related diseases.AIM To establish a tailored management strategy for HCC patients,we evaluated the impact of comorbid renal dysfunction(RD),as stratified by using the estimated glomerular filtration rate(EGFR),and assessed the oncologic validity of hepatectomy for HCC patients with RD.METHODS We enrolled 800 HCC patients who underwent hepatectomy between 1997 and 2015 at our university hospital.We categorized patients into two(RD,EGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m^(2);non-RD,EGFR≥60 mL/min/1.73 m^(2))and three groups(severe CKD,EGFR<30 mL/min/1.73 m^(2);mild CKD,30≤EGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m2;control,EGFR≥60 mL/min/1.73 m^(2))according to renal function as defined by the EGFR.Overall survival(OS)and recurrence-free survival(RFS)were compared among these groups with the log-rank test,and we also analyzed survival by using a propensity score matching(PSM)model to exclude the influence of patient characteristics.The mean postoperative observation period was 64.7±53.0 mo.RESULTS The RD patients were significantly older and had lower serum total bilirubin,aspartate aminotransferase,and aspartate aminotransferase levels than the non-RD patients(P<0.0001,P<0.001,P<0.05,and P<0.01,respectively).No patient received maintenance hemodialysis after surgery.Although the overall postoperative complication rates were similar between the RD and non-RD patients,the proportions of postoperative bleeding and surgical site infection were significantly higher in the RD patients(5.5%vs 1.8%;P<0.05,3.9%vs 1.8%;P<0.05,respectively),and postoperative bleeding was the highest in the severe CKD group(P<0.05).Regardless of the degree of comorbid RD,OS and RFS were comparable,even after PSM between the RD and non-RD groups to exclude the influence of patient characteristics,liver function,and other causes of death.CONCLUSION Comorbid mild RD had a negligible impact on the prognosis of HCC patients who underwent curative hepatectomy with appropriate perioperative management,and close attention to severe CKD is necessary to prevent postoperative bleeding and surgical site infection.