Predictive Factors Associated With Survival in Periampullary Cancers Following Pancreaticoduodenectomy: A Retrospective Analysis

Background Periampullary cancers arise from four different anatomical sites and are in close proximity. But they have different survival outcomes. There are various clinicopathological factors associated with survival after pancreaticoduodenectomy done for periampullary cancers. So, we aimed to identify the predictive factors associated with poor survival in periampullary cancers at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.Methods We analyzed the medical records of patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, from April 2004 to May 2014. Demography, clinicopathological features, and survival outcomes were analyzed retrospectively.Results This study included 61 patients. The mean age of patients was 56.2 +/- 14.2 years, and there was a male preponderance (M:F = 1.4). The median survival of all patients was 24 months. Non-pancreatic periampullary cancer patients had better median survival as compared to pancreatic cancer patients (24 vs. 8 months, p = 0.03). The presence of lymphovascular invasion (LVI), peripheral invasion (PNI), nodal involvement, and a higher lymph node ratio (LNR) were associated with poor median survival. However, perineural invasion was the only factor associated with poor survival in multivariate analysis.Conclusion The presence of perineural invasion is associated with poor survival outcomes in patients with periampullary cancer following pancreaticoduodenectomy. Also, carcinoma of the head of the pancreas has poor survival as compared to other periampullary cancers.