An Asian Tertiary Centre's Early Experience with Laparoscopic Cytoreductive Surgery and Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy for Peritoneal Carcinomatosis.

The use of open cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) has shown improved oncological survival in terms of treating peritoneal surface malignancies (PSM). However, this procedure often comes with associated morbidity. The move towards use of laparoscopic surgery in this field is postulated to lead to a reduction in morbidity and earlier return to function, but literature on its use for CRS and HIPEC has been scarce. We performed a retrospective review of 6 patients with PSM who underwent laparoscopic CRS and HIPEC in our institution and analysed the patient characteristics, oncological history, perioperative and postoperative outcomes. Median peritoneal cancer index (PCI) score was 0 (IQR 0-1.25). All 6 patients had appendiceal primaries. Median operative time was 285 min (IQR 228.8-300); median length of stay was 7.5 days (IQR 5-8.8). All patients achieved complete cytoreduction, and there was no conversion to open surgery. One patient developed port site infection and another 2 patients subsequently developed adhesions. Median follow-up time was 35 (IQR 17.5-41) months. No patients had developed recurrence at the time of data collection. We conclude that in patients with limited PCI sore (< 2), laparoscopic CRS and HIPEC are safe and feasible. With increasing experience, a select group of patients with limited PSM may be treated via minimally invasive surgery, minimising the morbidity of a traditional laparotomy.

Gastrointestinal and oncologic outcomes of pediatric gastrointestinal lymphoma following upfront resection or biopsy of bowel masses.

PURPOSE: Complete upfront resection of pediatric gastrointestinal lymphomas is recommended over biopsy whenever feasible, but either approach may have adverse sequelae. We sought to compare gastrointestinal and oncological outcomes of pediatric gastrointestinal lymphomas who underwent attempted upfront resection or biopsy of the presenting bowel mass. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed charts of children with gastrointestinal lymphomas treated on LMB89 and LMB96 protocols from 2000 to 2019 who underwent upfront gastrointestinal surgery, and compared resection and biopsy groups. RESULTS: Of 33 children with abdominal lymphomas, 20 had upfront gastrointestinal surgery-10 each had resection or biopsy. Patients with attempted upfront resections had fewer postoperative gastrointestinal complications compared to biopsies (10% vs. 60%, p = 0.057), but longer time to chemotherapy initiation (median 11.5 vs. 4.5 days, p < 0.001). Three resection patients were surgically down-staged. Second surgeries were required in 30% and 40% of resected and biopsied patients, respectively, at median 4.6 months. Survival was similar in both groups, but better in patients on LMB96 protocol and stage II/III disease. CONCLUSIONS: Children with upfront attempted resection had low rates of surgical down-staging, greater delay in chemotherapy initiation, but fewer gastrointestinal complications and subsequent surgeries than biopsies. Survival was similar regardless of upfront surgery, likely reflecting beneficial effects of newer protocols.

Preoperative Predictors of Futile Resection of Intraabdominal Extrahepatic Metastases from Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The management of post-liver resection recurrence is often the life-limiting factor in HCC treatment. While much has been published on intrahepatic recurrence and lung metastasis, there is a relative lack of data on intraabdominal extrahepatic metastasis (EHM). We sought to evaluate the outcomes of patients post-resection of intraabdominal EHM and assess preoperative factors predictive of early recurrence post-metastasectomy. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of 25 consecutive patients who underwent metastasectomy for intraabdominal EHM from 2003 to 2016 at our institution. RESULTS: Of the 25 cases of EHM, 16 were in the peritoneum, 3 in the adrenal glands, 3 in the large bowel, 1 in the spleen, 1 in the pancreas and 1 in the omentum. Median overall survival was 27 months (IQR 15-89 months). Twenty-one patients (84%) developed recurrence post-metastasectomy of EHM of which 12 patients experienced early recurrence within 12 months. The median time to recurrence post-metastasectomy was 11(IQR 15.5) months. Multivariate analysis demonstrated both hepatitis B (11 (91.6%) versus 4 (44.4%), p = 0.00) status and high tumour grade (8 (66.6%) versus 3 (25%), p = 0.004) to be significant independent predictors of early recurrence. Patients who experienced early recurrence had a significantly shorter median overall survival (18 months (95% CI 12.9-23.0)) compared to those who did not (89 months (95% CI 24.8-153.1), p = 0.004). CONCLUSION: Patients with EHM who underwent metastasectomy had a median overall survival of 27 months. Hepatitis B positivity and high primary tumour grade were preoperative predictors of futile surgery. All 7 patients who had both hepatitis B and high tumour grade experienced early recurrence post-metastasectomy.