Background: Morbid obesity is a risk factor for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). However, the impact of obesity on postoperative outcomes and overall survival in patients with PDAC remains a controversial topic.
Methods: Patients who underwent pancreatic surgery for PDAC between 1997 and 2018 were included in this study. Matched pairs (1:1) were generated according to age, gender and American Society of Anesthesiologists status. Obesity was defined according to the WHO definition as BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2. The primary endpoint was the difference in overall survival between patients with and without obesity.
Results: Out of 553 patients, a total of 76 fully matched pairs were generated. Obese patients had a mean BMI-level of 33 compared to 25 kg/m2 in patients without obesity (p = 0.001). The frequency of arterial hypertension (p = 0.002), intraoperative blood loss (p = 0.039), and perineural invasion (p = 0.033) were also higher in obese patients. Clinically relevant postoperative complications (p = 0.163) and overall survival rates (p = 0.885) were comparable in both study groups. Grade II and III obesity resulted in an impaired overall survival, although this was not statistically significant. Subgroup survival analyses revealed no significant differences for completion of adjuvant chemotherapy and curative-intent surgery.
Conclusions: Obesity did not affect overall survival and postoperative complications in these patients with PDAC. Therefore, pancreatic surgery should not be withheld from obese patients.
Keywords: morbidity; mortality; obesity; pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma; survival.