Surgical Treatment of Pancreatic RCC Metastases

Retrospective data was analysed from 26 patients that were submitted to pancreatic resection between August 2002 and November 2015. Inclusion criteria were: single or multiple metastases in pancreas or extra pancreatic; primary RCC; never received chemotherapic treatment; patients that already received a previous pancreatic resection were also included. Cases were collected from two high-volume centres: Surgical Department "Pietro Valdoni" in Policlinico Umberto I and the Division of Transplantation and General Surgery at University of Pisa. Different kind of surgical approaches were taken into account in this study: duodenal-pancreatectomy, total-pancreatectomy and distal-pancreatectomy associated or not with other metastatic site resections. Surgery was performed either with classical open approach and modern robotic surgical approach, with the robot "Da Vinci". Aim of surgical interventions were to remove all metastases in association to radical lymphadenectomy thus to achieve R0 result. All postoperative events occurring within 90 days of surgery were considered. Postoperative complications were graded according to Clavien-Dindo classification. Patients were followed-up 3 months after discharge and every 6 months thereafter. Patients had blood chemistries and CT scans at least every year. A database was used to record all patients' data. Results were analysed in terms of Operative Mortality and Morbidity, Actuarial Survival, Actuarial Disease-Free Survival and Quality of Life. Protocols were approved by the bioethical review committee and meet the guidelines of both University Sapienza of Rome and University of Pisa. QoL was measured by Karnofsky performance scale and through Activities of Daily Living scale (ADL), Instrumental Activities of Daily living scale (IADL), BMI evaluation, serum albumin and hemoglobin, also depression was evaluated as a parameter. QoL was defined by combination of these parameters as: excellent, good, fair, poor or very poor. A low Karnofsky scale index with inadequate social and environmental situations, a reduction in functional capacity with depression and severe weight-loss were identified as a decline in QoL. Data was analysed via Chi-square test, as well as Student's paired and unpaired t-tests. Actuarial relative survival and actuarial relative disease-free survival were described by Kaplan-Meier analysis. A log-rank test was used to compare continuous variables and was expressed by Kaplan-Meier curves. Homogeneity of the different groups to be compared was tested by chi-square test. Statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0,05.