Liver metastasis resection: a simple technique that makes it easier

SURGICAL TECHNIQUES TO INCREASE RESECTABILITY IN LIVER METASTASIS

The development of surgical techniques, chemotherapy, biological agents, and multidisciplinary approaches have made patients with unresectable colorectal liver metastases eligible for surgery. Many strategies have been developed to allow patients for surgical resection (percutaneous portal vein embolization, liver venous deprivation, parenchyma-sparing liver surgery, reverse strategy, associating liver partition and portal vein ligation for staged hepatectomy, and liver transplantation), the only form of disease control and curative treatment.

New two-step wedge liver resection technique: "zoom resection": A case report

Different surgical procedures have been described for the treatment of colorectal liver metastases. The appropriate surgical approach depends, among many other factors, on the relationship between liver metastases and suprahepatic veins. If possible, the detachment of colorectal liver metastasis from suprahepatic veins is a good alternative liver parenchyma sparing technique. In this study, we describe a new two-step wedge liver resection technique for colorectal liver metastases located between suprahepatic veins. Prior to resection, intraoperative ultrasound is employed in order to plan and guide both steps. Initially, we place stitches and resect a cylindrical piece of normal liver parenchyma above the tumor and suprahepatic veins. Next, we place stitches on the future specimen located between suprahepatic veins, then resect it. The main advantages of this procedure are the good visualization and vascular control that may be achieved during the detachment of the tumor from suprahepatic veins. We call this procedure "zoom resection" because its dynamics are similar to the workings of a photograph camera's telescopic system. We present the case of a 55-year-old patient diagnosed with multiple colorectal liver metastases, one of which was resected through this technique.

Parenchymal-Sparing Versus Anatomic Liver Resection for Colorectal Liver Metastases: a Systematic Review

INTRODUCTION

Colorectal liver metastases develop in 50% of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Surgical resection for colorectal liver metastasis typically involves either anatomical resection (AR) or parenchymal-sparing hepatectomy (PSH). The objective of the current study was to analyze data on parenchymal versus non-parenchymal-sparing hepatic resections for CLM.

METHODS

A systematic review of the literature regarding parenchymal-sparing hepatectomy was performed. MEDLINE/PubMed, Cochrane, and EMBASE databases were searched for publications containing the following medical subject headings (MeSH): "Colorectal Neoplasms," "Neoplasm Metastasis," "Liver Neoplasms" and "Hepatectomy". Besides, the following keywords were used to complete the literature search: "Hepatectomy," "liver resection," "hepatic resection," "anatomic/anatomical," "nonanatomic/ nonanatomical," "major," "minor," "limited," "wedge," "CRLM/CLM," and "colorectal liver metastasis." Data was reviewed, aggregated, and analyzed.

RESULTS

Two thousand five hundred five patients included in 12 studies who underwent either PSH (n = 1087 patients) or AR (n = 1418 patients) were identified. Most patients had a primary tumor that originated in the colon (PSH 52.2-74.4% vs. AR 53.9-74.3%) (P = 0.289). The majority of studies included a large subset of patients with only a solitary tumor with a reported median tumor number of 1-2 regardless of whether the patient underwent PSH or AR. Median EBL was no different among patients undergoing PSH (100-896 mL) versus AR (200-1489 mL) for CLM (P = 0.248). There was no difference in median length-of-stay following PSH (6-17 days) versus AR (7-15 days) (P = 0.747). While there was considerable inter-study variability regarding margin status, there was no difference in the incidence of R0 resection among patients undergoing PSH (66.7-100%) versus AR (71.6-98.6%) (P = 0.58). When assessing overall survival, there was no difference whether resection of CLM was performed with PSH (5 years OS: mean 44.7%, range 29-62%) or AR (5 years OS: mean 44.6%, range 27-64%) (P = 0.97).

CONCLUSION

PSH had a comparable safety and efficacy profile compared with AR and did not compromise oncologic outcomes. PSH should be considered an appropriate surgical approach to treatment for patients with CLM that facilitates preservation of hepatic parenchyma.

Parenchymal-sparing liver surgery in patients with colorectal carcinoma liver metastases

Liver resection is the treatment of choice for patients with colorectal liver metastases (CLM). However, major resections are often required to achieve R0 resection, which are associated with substantial rates of morbidity and mortality. Maximizing the amount of residual liver gained increasing significance in modern liver surgery due to the high incidence of chemotherapy-associated parenchymal injury. This fact, along with the progressive expansion of resectability criteria, has led to the development of a surgical philosophy known as "parenchymal-sparing liver surgery" (PSLS). This philosophy includes a variety of resection strategies, either performed alone or in combination with ablative therapies. A profound knowledge of liver anatomy and expert intraoperative ultrasound skills are required to perform PSLS appropriately and safely. There is a clear trend toward PSLS in hepatobiliary centers worldwide as current evidence indicates that tumor biology is the most important predictor of intrahepatic recurrence and survival, rather than the extent of a negative resection margin. Tumor removal avoiding the unnecessary sacrifice of functional parenchyma has been associated with less surgical stress, fewer postoperative complications, uncompromised cancer-related outcomes and higher feasibility of future resections. The increasing evidence supporting PSLS prompts its consideration as the gold-standard surgical approach for CLM.

Hepatocellular Carcinomas and Primary Liver Tumors as Predictive Factors for Postoperative Mortality after Liver Resection: A Meta-Analysis of More than 35,000 Hepatic Resections

Liver resection is considered the therapeutic gold standard for primary and metastatic liver neoplasms. The reduction of postoperative complications and mortality has resulted in a more aggressive approach to hepatic malignancies. For the most part, results of liver surgery have been published by highly experienced institutions, but the observations of highly specialized units results may not reflect the current status of hepatic surgery, underestimating mortality and complications. The objective of this study is to evaluate morbidity and mortality as a result of liver resection for primary and metastatic lesions, analyzing a large number of studies with a meta-analytic process taking into account the overdispersion of data. An extensive literature search has been conducted, and 148 papers published between January 2000 and April 2008, including a total of 36,629 patients from both high-volume and low volume institutions, were included in the meta-analysis. A beta binomial model was used to provide a robust estimate of the summary event rate by pooling overdispersion binomial data from different studies. Overall morbidity and mortality after liver surgery were 29.32 per cent and 3.15 per cent, respectively. Significantly higher postoperative mortality was observed after liver resection for hepatocellular carcinomas and primary hepatic tumors. The application of a beta binomial model to correct for overdispersion of liver surgery data showed significantly higher postoperative mortality rates in patients with hepatocellular carcinomas or primary hepatic tumors after liver resection.

Laparoscopic enucleation of liver tumors. Corkscrew technique revisited

BACKGROUND

Enucleation of small lesions located near the hepatic surface can be achieved with low morbidity and mortality. This article describes a simple laparoscopic technique for enucleation of liver tumors.

METHODS

After inspection and intraoperative ultrasonography, Glisson's capsule is marked with eletrocautery 2 cm away from the tumor margin. Ultrasonography is used to ascertain surgical margin right before liver transection. Hemihepatic ischemia is applied and marked area is anchored by stitches. The suture is held together by metallic clips and upward traction is performed, facilitating the transection of the parenchyma and correct identification of vascular and biliary structures.

RESULTS

This technique has been successfully employed in six consecutive patients. There were four men and two women, mean age 50.3 years. Four patients underwent liver resection for malignant disease and two for benign liver neoplasm. Pathologic surgical margins were free in all cases and mean hospital stay was 2 days. No postoperative mortality was observed.

CONCLUSION

This technique may facilitate laparoscopic nonanatomical liver resection and reduce risk of positive surgical margins. It is also useful in combination with anatomical laparoscopic liver resections such as right or left hemihepatectomies in patients with bilateral liver tumors as occurred in one of our patients.