Preoperative biliary drainage in severely jaundiced patients with pancreatic head cancer: A retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Guidelines recommend against preoperative biliary drainage (PBD) in patients with pancreatic head cancer if bilirubin levels are <250 µmol/l. However, patients with higher bilirubin levels undergo PBD, despite the lack of supporting evidence. This study aims to evaluate outcomes in patients with a bilirubin level ≥250 and < 250. METHODS: Patients were identified from databases of 3 centers. Outcomes were compared in patients with a bilirubin level ≥250 versus <250 both at the time of diagnosis and directly prior to surgery. RESULTS: 244 patients were included. PBD was performed in 64% (123/191) with bilirubin <250 at diagnosis and 91% (48/53) with bilirubin ≥250. PBD technical success (83% vs. 81%, p = 0.80) and PBD related complications (33% vs. 29%, p = 0.60) did not differ between these groups. Analyzing bilirubin levels ≥250 versus <250 directly prior to surgery, no differences in severe postoperative complications and mortality were found. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with a pancreatic head cancer, PBD technical success and complications, and severe postoperative complications did not differ between patients with a bilirubin level ≥250 and < 250. Our study does not support a different approach regarding PBD in patients with severe jaundice.

Surgical Outcome of Children with a Malignant Liver Tumour in The Netherlands: A Retrospective Consecutive Cohort Study.

Introduction: Six to eight children are diagnosed with a malignant liver tumour yearly in the Netherlands. The majority of these tumours are hepatoblastoma (HB) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), for which radical resection, often in combination with chemotherapy, is the only curative treatment option. We investigated the surgical outcome of children with a malignant liver tumour in a consecutive cohort in the Netherlands. Methods: In this nationwide, retrospective observational study, all patients (age < 18 years) diagnosed with a malignant liver tumour, who underwent partial liver resection or orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) between January 2014 and April 2021, were included. Children with a malignant liver tumour who were not eligible for surgery were excluded from the analysis. Data regarding tumour characteristics, diagnostics, treatment, complications and survival were collected. Outcomes included major complications (Clavien−Dindo ≥ 3a) within 90 days and disease-free survival. The results of the HB group were compared to those of a historical HB cohort. Results: Twenty-six children were analysed, of whom fourteen (54%) with HB (median age 21.5 months), ten (38%) with HCC (median age 140 months) and one with sarcoma and a CNSET. Thirteen children with HB (93%) and three children with HCC (30%) received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Partial hepatic resection was possible in 19 patients (12 HB, 6 HCC, and 1 sarcoma), whilst 7 children required OLT (2 HB, 4 HCC, and 1 CNSET). Radical resection (R0, margin ≥ 1.0 mm) was obtained in 24 out of 26 patients, with recurrence only in the patient with CNSET. The mean follow-up was 39.7 months (HB 40 months, HCC 40 months). Major complications occurred in 9 out of 26 patients (35% in all, 4 of 14, 29% for HB). There was no 30- or 90-day mortality, with disease-free survival after surgery of 100% for HB and 80% for HCC, respectively. Results showed a tendency towards a better outcome compared to the historic cohort, but numbers were too small to reach significance. Conclusion: Survival after surgical treatment for malignant liver tumours in the Netherlands is excellent. Severe surgical complications arise in one-third of patients, but most resolve without long-term sequelae and have no impact on long-term survival.

[MRI-guided radiotherapy: An innovation for patients with upper abdominal malignancies]. / Radiotherapie op geleide van het actuele MRI-beeld.

MRI-guided radiotherapy is a new technique for high-precision radiation(stereotactic radiotherapy) for patients with malignancies. This minimally invasive treatmentis carried out with the aid of an irradiation device with an integrated MRI scanner, the 'magnetic resonance linear accelerator' (MR-Linac), which is used to image the tumour and surrounding tissue immediately before each radiotherapy treatment. The radiation plan can be adapted on the basis of the latest MRI image as required. MRI-guided radiotherapy can have advantages when treating patients with malignancies in the upper abdomen, such as pancreatic carcinoma or periampullary malignancies. These tumours and the surrounding tissues are often poorly visible on the CT scans used in conventional radiotherapy techniques. Patients with upper-abdominal malignancies can be precisely and effectively treated with MRI-guided radiotherapy and organs that are sensitive to radiation can be spared as much as possible, thus decreasing the risk of side-effects.