Bilobar spreading of colorectal liver metastases does not significantly affect survival after R0 resection in the era of interdisciplinary multimodal treatment

Chances, challenges and outcomes of patients with complex bilobar colorectal liver metastases approached by a combined multimodal therapy with liver resection and local ablative therapy

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

In treatment of colorectal liver metastases (CRC-LM), liver surgery combined with systemic therapies and local ablation (LAT) allows improved survival. This study aims at the outcomes of patients with complex bilobar CRC-LM who were intended to undergo multimodal therapy with liver resection and LAT.

METHODS

Forty-three CRC-LM patients with recommendation for multimodal treament were extracted from 5878 tumor board decisions between 2014 and 2017. Outcome variables included patient survival, as well as completion of hepatic clearance. Prognostic factors were identified by correlation and a Cox proportional hazards model.

RESULTS

Out of 43 patients only 23 achieved complete clearance of CRC-LM. One- and 3-year overall survival of patients with cleared liver disease was 100% and 91.7%, respectively, as compared to 83.8% and 12.1%. Incomplete hepatic clearance was the strongest independent risk factor for overall survival (hazards ratio [HR], 5.86; p = .009). Risk factors for incomplete clearance were higher age (r = .34; p = .026), comorbidities (r = .40; p = .008), major complications (r = .34; p = .024), and prolonged intensive care unit stay (r = .41; p = .017).

CONCLUSION

Completion of hepatic clearance is crucial to achieve long-term survival in patients with complex bilobar CRC-LM. Careful patient selection and treatment planning should avoid treatment failure before completing the intended therapy plan when multimodal treatments are planned.

A clinical-radiomic model for improved prognostication of surgical candidates with colorectal liver metastases

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Colorectal cancer with liver metastases is potentially curable with surgical resection however clinical prognostic factors can insufficiently stratify patients. This study aims to assess whether radiomic features are prognostic and can inform clinical decision making.

METHODS

This single-site retrospective study included 102 patients who underwent colorectal liver metastases resection with preoperative computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with gadoxetic acid (EOB) and clinical covariates. A lasso-regularized multivariate Cox proportional hazards model was applied to 114 features (10 clinical, 104 radiomic) to determine association with disease-free survival (DFS). A prognostic index was derived using the significant Cox regression coefficients and their corresponding input features and a threshold was determined to classify patients into high- and low-risk groups, and DFS compared using log-rank tests.

RESULTS

Four covariates were significantly associated with DFS; bilobar disease (hazard ratio [HR]= 1.56; P = .0043), complete pathological response (HR= 0.67; P = .025), minimum pixel value (HR= 1.66; P = .00016), and small area emphasis (HR= 0.62; P = .0013) from the EOB-MRI data. Radiomic CT features were not prognostic. The prognostic index strongly stratified high- and low-risk prognostic groups (HR = 0.31; P = .00068).

CONCLUSION

Radiomic MRI features provided meaningful prognostic information above clinical covariates alone. This merits further validation for potential clinical implementation to inform management.

Development and validation of novel scoring system for the prediction of disease recurrence following resection of colorectal liver metastasis

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to identify predictive factors for the recurrence of colorectal cancer liver metastasis (CRLM) and then to develop a corresponding novel scoring system that should improve the sensitivity of predicting recurrence in patients with CRLM.

METHODS

A total of 295 consecutive CRLM patients were enrolled in our institution between January 2002 and December 2015. Multivariate analyses were performed to identify the variables associated with disease recurrence and established the novel scoring system based on it.

RESULTS

The scoring system considered seven variables: synchronosity, CA19-9 level, number of liver metastasis, largest size of liver metastasis, resection margin of hepatic lesion, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and prognostic nutritional index. The area under the curve of ROC was 0.824 (95% confidence interval 0.767-0.882); the sensitivity of our scoring system was 87.9%, specificity was 66.7%, positive predictive value was 20.6%, and negative predictive value was 20.9%.

CONCLUSION

For patients with CRLM undergoing curative hepatic resection, our novel scoring system would improve the sensitivity for prediction of disease recurrence in Case of CRLM patients.

Anti-platelet therapy does not influence the outcome of patients undergoing hepatic resection for colorectal liver metastases, an observational study

AIM

To evaluate the impact of anti-platelet therapy on the outcomes of patients undergoing liver resection for CRLM. Secondary aim was to determine whether anti-platelet therapy influenced histo-pathological changes in CRLM.

METHODS

Patients treated with liver resection for CRLM were identified from a prospectively maintained hepatobiliary database during an 11-year period. Collated data included demographics, primary tumour treatment, surgical data, histopathology analysis and clinical outcome.

RESULTS

454 patients that underwent primary hepatic resections for CRLM were included. 60 patients were on anti-platelet therapy. 241 patients developed recurrent disease and 131 patients have died. Multi-variate analysis identified 4 independent predictors of disease-free survival: tumour number; tumour size; peri-neural invasion; and resection margin. The presence of peri-neural invasion and multiple hepatic metastases were independent predictors of poorer overall survival on multi-variate analysis. Uni-variate analysis showed that the use of anti-platelet therapy was associated with larger tumour size (p=0.031) and vascular invasion (p=0.023).

CONCLUSION

Anti-platelet therapy does not affect the survival outcome in patients with CRLM following liver resection. Anti-platelet therapy is associated with larger liver metastases and vascular invasion on histo-pathological analysis.

SYNOPSIS

A large retrospective study looking at outcomes of patients taking pre operative anti platelet therapy who have undergone liver resection for colorectal liver metastases.

Liver resection is justified for patients with bilateral multiple colorectal liver metastases: A propensity-score-matched analysis

BACKGROUND

Increasingly, patients with multiple colorectal liver metastases (CLM) are surgically treated. Some studies have shown that patients with bilobar and unilobar multiple CLM have similar outcomes, but other have shown that patients with bilobar CLM have worse outcomes after resection. We aimed to compare clinical outcomes of surgical treatment of bilobar and unilobar CLM using propensity score matching.

METHODS

The single-institution study included patients who underwent hepatectomy for ≥3 histologically confirmed CLM during 1998-2014. Clinicopathologic characteristics and long-term outcomes were compared between patients with bilobar and unilobar CLM in a propensity-score-adjusted cohort.

RESULTS

A total of 473 patients met the inclusion criteria, 271 (57%) with bilobar and 202 (43%) with unilobar CLM. In the propensity-score-matched population (bilobar, 170; unilobar, 170), no differences were observed according to the distribution of CLM except for a greater frequency of concomitant ablation, and R1 resection in the bilobar group. There was no difference between the bilobar and unilobar groups in 5-year overall survival rates (46% and 49%, respectively; P = 0.740) or 3-year recurrence-free survival rates (21% and 24%, respectively; P = 0.674).

CONCLUSIONS

Tumor distribution may not affect the curability of surgery for multiple CLM. Liver resection would be justified for selected patients with bilobar CLM.

Bilobar versus unilobar multiple colorectal liver metastases: a propensity score analysis of surgical outcomes and recurrence patterns

BACKGROUND

Bilobar multiple colorectal liver metastases (MCLM) are often considered incurable or associated with a poor prognosis even after R0 resection. This study was designed to compare the long-term outcomes and recurrence patterns after one-stage resection in patients with bilobar versus unilobar MCLM.

METHODS

The records of patients undergoing parenchymal-sparing intent hepatectomy between 1994 and 2015 were reviewed. Survival and recurrence patterns were analyzed by propensity score matching.

RESULTS

The study population included 140 patients: 81 patients with bilobar MCLM versus 59 patients with unilobar MCLM. In the propensity score matching analysis (bilobar, n = 35 vs. unilobar, n = 35), the short-term outcomes did not differ between the two groups. Five-year overall survival (54.8% in bilobar vs. 51.2% in unilobar; P = 0.388) and recurrence-free survival (28.5% in bilobar vs. 36.2% in unilobar; P = 0.261) also did not differ. No significant differences were found in liver-only recurrence (22.9% in bilobar vs. 25.7% in unilobar; P = 1.000) and other recurrence patterns.

CONCLUSIONS

The clearance of bilobar MCLM by one-stage resection of parenchymal-sparing intent provided comparable long-term survival to unilobar MCLM.

Resection margin influences the outcome of patients with bilobar colorectal liver metastases

AIM

To evaluate the outcome of patients with bilobar colorectal liver metastases (CRLM) and identify clinico-pathological variables that influenced survival.

METHODS

Patients with bilobar CRLM were identified from a prospectively maintained hepatobiliary database during the study period (January 2010-June 2014). Collated data included demographics, primary tumour treatment, surgical data, histopathology analysis and clinical outcome. Down-staging therapy included Oxaliplatin- or Irinotecan- based regimens, and Cetuximab was also used in patients that were K-RAS wild-type. Response to neo-adjuvant therapy was assessed at the multi-disciplinary team meeting and considered for surgery if all macroscopic CRLM were resectable with a clear margin while preserving sufficient liver parenchyma.

RESULTS

Of the 136 patients included, thirty-two (23.5%) patients were considered inoperable and referred for palliative chemotherapy, and thirty-four (25%) patients underwent liver resection. Seventy (51.4%) patients underwent down-staging therapy, of which 37 (52.8%) patients responded sufficiently to undergo liver resection. Patients that failed to respond to down-staging therapy (n = 33, 47.1%) were referred for palliative therapy. There was a significant difference in overall survival between the three groups (surgery vs down-staging therapy vs inoperable disease, P < 0.001). All patients that underwent hepatic resection, including patients that had down-staging therapy, had a significantly better overall survival compared to patients that were inoperable (P < 0.001). On univariate analysis, only resection margin significantly influenced disease-free survival (P = 0.017). On multi-variate analysis, R0 resection (P = 0.030) and female (P = 0.036) gender significantly influenced overall survival.

CONCLUSION

Patients undergoing liver resection with bilobar CRLM have a significantly better survival outcome. R0 resection is associated with improved disease-free and overall survival in this patient group.

Nanoengineered strategies to optimize dendritic cells for gastrointestinal tumor immunotherapy: from biology to translational medicine

Nanomedicine may play an important role in improving the clinical efficacy of dendritic cell-based immunotherapy against GI tract malignancies. Dendritic cell-based vaccines have proven their effectiveness against different established GI tract tumors, yet their success is mainly hindered by the strong tumor-induced suppressive microenvironment. The sustained and targeted release of tumor antigens to dendritic cells using different nanoengineered approaches would be an efficient strategy to overcome established immune tolerance. Encapsulation would result in low diffusivity, restricted movement, effective crosspresentation and enhanced T-cell responses. These nanotherapy-based approaches will certainly help with the designing of clinically translatable dendritic cell-based therapeutic vaccines and facilitate the selective removal of residual disease in gastrointestinal cancer patients following standard treatments.

Lymphatic drainage of the liver and its implications in the management of colorectal cancer liver metastases

The liver is the most common site of distant metastases in patients with colorectal cancer. Surgery represents the mainstream for curative treatment of colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRCLM) with long-term survival up to 58 and 36 % at 5 and 10 years, respectively. Despite advances on diagnosis, staging and surgical strategies, 60-70 % of patients will develop recurrence of the disease even after R0 resection of CRCLM. Tumor staging, prognosis, and therapeutic approaches for cancer are most often based on the extent of involvement of regional lymph nodes (LNs) and, to a lesser extent, on the invasion of regional lymphatic vessels draining the primary tumor. For CRCLM, the presence of intra hepatic lymphatic and blood vascular dissemination has been associated with an increased risk of intra hepatic recurrence, poorer disease-free and overall survival after liver resection. Also, several studies have reviewed the role of surgery in the patient with concomitant CRCLM and liver pedicle LN metastasis. Although pedicle LN involvement is related to worst survival rates, it does not differentiate patients that will relapse from those that will not. This review aims to briefly describe the anatomy of the liver's lymphatic drainage, the incidence of intrahepatic lymphatic invasion and hilar lymph node involvement, as well as their clinical impact in CRCLM. A better understanding of the role of liver lymphatic metastasis might, in the near future, impact the strategy of systemic therapies after liver resection as for primary colorectal tumors.

Surgery for colorectal liver metastases

Half of all patients with colorectal cancer develop metastatic disease. The liver is the principal site for metastases, and surgical resection is the only modality that offers the potential for long-term cure. Appropriate patient selection for surgery and improvements in perioperative care have resulted in low morbidity and mortality rates, resulting in this being the therapy of choice for suitable patients. Modern management of colorectal liver metastases is multimodal incorporating open and laparoscopic surgery, ablative therapies such as radiofrequency ablation or microwave ablation and (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy. The majority of patients with hepatic metastases should be considered for resectional surgery, if all disease can be resected, as this offers the only opportunity for prolonged survival.

Increased growth of colorectal liver metastasis following partial hepatectomy

Nearly 50 % of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients develop liver metastases with liver resection being the only option to cure patients. Residual micrometastases or circulating tumor cells are considered a cause of tumor relapse. This work investigates the influence of partial hepatectomy (PH) on the growth and molecular composition of CRC liver metastasis in a syngeneic rat model. One million CC531 colorectal tumor cells were implanted via the portal vein in WAG/Rij rats followed by a 30 % PH a day later. Control groups either received tumor cells followed by a sham-operation or were injected with a buffer solution followed by PH. Animals were examined with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and liver tissues were processed for immunolabeling and PCR analysis. One-third PH was associated with an almost threefold increase in relative tumor mass (MRI volumetry: 2.8-fold and transcript levels of CD44: 2.3-fold). Expression of molecular markers for invasiveness and aggressiveness (CD49f, CXCR4, Axin2 and c-met) was increased following PH, however with no significant differences when referring to the relative expression levels (relating to tumor mass). Liver metastases demonstrated a significantly higher proliferation rate (Ki67) 2 weeks following PH and cell divisions also increased in the surrounding liver tissue. Following PH, the stimulated growth of metastases clearly exceeded the compensation in liver volume with long-lasting proliferative effects. However, the distinct tumor composition was not influenced by liver regeneration. Future investigations should focus on the inhibition of cell cycle (i.e. systemic therapy strategies, irradiation) to hinder liver regeneration and therefore restrain tumor growth.