A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Mapping Biopsy for Primary Extramammary Paget's Disease in Reducing Recurrence Following Surgical Excision.

Objective: To examine the association between the performance of mapping biopsies and surgical outcomes postexcision of extramammary Paget's disease (EMPD). Background: Primary EMPD is a rare entity associated with poorly defined surgical margins and difficult-to-access sites of lesions. Surgical resection with clear margins remains the preferred management method. The use of mapping biopsies might be beneficial, particularly in lowering disease recurrence. Methods: Available literature was reviewed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses methodology before a fixed-effect meta-analysis was performed to identify the presence of a correlation between performing mapping biopsies and positive margins on permanent sections as well as disease-free survival. Additional study results not included in the quantitative assessment were qualitatively assessed and reported. Results: A total of 12 studies were shortlisted for final analysis. 294 patients who underwent mapping biopsies and 48 patients who did not undergo mapping biopsies were included in the assessment. Forest plot analysis revealed a pooled rate ratio of 0.50 (95% CI, 0.32-0.77) in the prevalence of positive margins in patients with mapping biopsies performed as compared to patients without. The pooled rate ratio of the prevalence of disease-free survival in patients with mapping biopsies performed as compared to patients without was 1.38 (95% CI, 1.03-1.84). Qualitative assessment of the remaining selected studies revealed equivocal results. Conclusions: Mapping biopsies are able to improve EMPD surgical excision outcomes but given the rarity of the disease and heterogeneity of mapping biopsy procedures, further confirmation with randomized controlled trials or a larger patient pool is necessary.

High intra-abdominal pressure during hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) following cytoreductive surgery (CRS) for peritoneal surface malignancies.

OBJECTIVE: Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) represent a mainstay of treatment for peritoneal malignancies. There is evidence that HIPEC using high intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) results in increased tissue penetration, although its safety profile remains relatively unknown. We thus aim to evaluate differences in intra- and post-operative outcomes in patients undergoing CRS-HIPEC with different levels of IAP. METHODS: This pilot prospective cohort study was conducted from January 2020 to February 2021 with patients undergoing CRS-HIPEC. Low IAP during HIPEC was defined as <18 mmHg and high IAP as ≥18 mmHg. Data was collected on patient and tumor characteristics, intra-operative clinical and biochemical parameters, and immediate post-operative outcomes. RESULTS: 40 patients underwent CRS-HIPEC (n low = 20, n high = 20). Median IAP in the low and high IAP groups were 12.0 and 19.0 mmHg respectively. During HIPEC, both groups experienced increase in heart rate, central venous pressure, end tidal CO2, temperature, and serum glucose, with decrease in mean arterial pressure and base excess. There were no significant differences in hemodynamics between the 2 groups. Mild electrolyte derangements and a decrease in hemoglobin were noted in the high IAP group but were of small magnitude. Post-operatively, high IAP did not result in increased rate of complications, time to full feeds, ICU or total hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: High IAP in HIPEC is well tolerated and did not result in additional adverse events.

A systematic review on quality of life (QoL) of patients with peritoneal metastasis (PM) who underwent pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC).

Background: Pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) has recently emerged as a palliative alternative for patients with unresectable peritoneal metastasis (PM). Quality of life (QoL) has increasingly been used as an endpoint to evaluate treatment outcomes. This review aims to identify evidence on how PIPAC would impact the QoL of PM patients. Content: A systematic review was performed on articles identified from Medline, EMBASE, PsycInfo, and Web of Sciences. A meta-analysis was conducted on further selected studies. ACROBAT-NRSI was attempted to assess the risk of bias (RoB). Summary: Nine studies using the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire to assess QoL after repeated PIPAC cycles were identified. Majority was found to be moderately biased and a great extent of heterogeneity was observed. Four studies on PM from either gastric cancer (GC) or epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) were included for meta-analysis. In 31 GC patients and 104 EOC patients, QoL remained stable in 13/14 and 11/14 EORTC QLQ-C30 scales. PIPAC was inferior to cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS/HIPEC) in global QoL and functioning but superior in symptom reduction. Outlook: PIPAC is a well-tolerated option for most GC and EOC patients with irresectable PM. Future trials are warranted to confirm the findings.

Prospective Comparison of the Performance of MRI Versus CT in the Detection and Evaluation of Peritoneal Surface Malignancies.

Background: The performance of MRI versus CT in the detection and evaluation of peritoneal surface malignancies (PSM) remains unclear in the current literature. Our study is the first prospective study in an Asian center comparing the two imaging modalities, validated against intra-operative findings. Methods: A total of 36 patients with PSM eligible for CRS-HIPEC underwent both MRI and CT scans up to 6 weeks before the operation. The scans were assessed for the presence and distribution of PSM and scored using the peritoneal cancer index (PCI), which were compared against PCI determined at surgery. Results: Both MRI and CT were 100% sensitive and specific in detecting the overall presence of PSM. Across all peritoneal regions, the sensitivity and specificity for PSM detection was 49.1% and 93.0% for MRI, compared to 47.8% and 95.1% for CT (p = 0.76). MRI was more sensitive than CT for small bowel disease, although the difference did not reach statistical significance. Comparing PCI on imaging with intra-operative PCI, the mean difference was found to be −3.4 ± 5.4 (p < 0.01) for MRI, and −3.9 ± 4.1 (p < 0.01) for CT. The correlation between imaging and intra-operative PCI was poor, with a concordance coefficient of 0.76 and 0.79 for MRI and CT, respectively. Within individual peritoneal regions, there was also poor agreement between imaging and intra-operative PCI for both modalities, other than in regions 1 and 3. Conclusion: MRI and CT are comparable in the detection and evaluation of PSM. While sensitive in the overall detection of PSM, they are likely to underestimate the true disease burden.

Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) in peritoneal sarcomatosis-A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) play an important role in the treatment of various peritoneal surface malignancies, but its efficacy in peritoneal sarcomatosis (PS) remains unknown. Hence, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate outcomes of CRS-HIPEC in PS, in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. 16 studies with a total of 320 patients were included in the meta-analysis. Pooled mean length of hospital stay after CRS-HIPEC was 16.0 days (95% CI: 12.2-19.8) and rate of serious complications was 17.4% (95% CI: 9.8-26.3). The median DFS was 12.0 months (95% CI: 8.0-16.0) and the 5-year DFS was 21.8% (95% CI: 13.2-31.7). Overall pooled median OS was 29.3 months (95% CI: 23.8-34.8), with a 5-year OS of 35.3% (95% CI: 26.3-44.8). Subgroup analysis showed that patients with CC-0 cytoreduction had a higher median OS of 34.6 months (95% CI: 23.2-45.9). Median OS for patients with a primary tumour histology of leiomyosarcoma and liposarcoma was 33.5 months (95% CI: 15.9-51.1) and 39.1 months (95% CI: 20.8-57.5) respectively. The site of recurrence was locoregional in 57.3% (95% CI: 38.9-74.8), distant in 17.3% (95% CI: 3.9-35.6), and both in 17.4% (95% CI: 5.8-32.2). In conclusion, our results suggest that CRS-HIPEC may improve outcomes in a select group of PS patients.