Background: Survival after pancreatic head adenocarcinoma surgery is determined by tumor characteristics, resection margins, and adjuvant chemotherapy. Few studies have analyzed the long-term impact of postoperative morbidity. The aim of the present study was to assess the impact of postoperative complications on long-term survival after pancreaticoduodenectomy for cancer.
Methods: Of 294 consecutive pancreatectomies performed between January 2000 and July 2011, a total of 101 pancreatic head resections for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma were retrospectively analyzed. Postoperative complications were classified on a five-grade validated scale and were correlated with long-term survival. Grade IIIb to IVb complications were defined as severe.
Results: Postoperative mortality and morbidity were 5 and 57 %, respectively. Severe postoperative complications occurred in 16 patients (16 %). Median overall survival was 1.4 years. Significant prognostic factors of survival were the N-stage of the tumor (median survival 3.4 years for N0 vs. 1.3 years for N1, p = 0.018) and R status of the resection (median survival 1.6 years for R0 vs. 1.2 years for R1, p = 0.038). Median survival after severe postoperative complications was decreased from 1.9 to 1.2 years (p = 0.06). Median survival for N0 or N1 tumor or after R0 resection was not influenced by the occurrence and severity of complications, but patients with a R1 resection and severe complications showed a worsened median survival of 0.6 vs. 2.0 years without severe complications (p = 0.0005).
Conclusions: Postoperative severe morbidity per se had no impact on long-term survival except in patients with R1 tumor resection. These results suggest that severe complications after R1 resection predict poor outcome.