Comparison of Pancreas-sparing Duodenectomy With Pancreatoduodenectomy for Early-stage Periampullary Carcinoma:A Prospective Non-Randomized Trial

Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is commonly used for periampullary carcinoma (PC). In recent years, morbidity and mortality rates following PD have decreased, but the operative stress induced by pancreatectomy is considerable. Less-invasive surgery should thus be elected for PC without pancreatic and diffuse lymph node involvement. From the perspective of organ-preserving resection, pancreas-sparing duodenectomy (PSD) represents an attractive option for selected periampullary tumors, and offers an alternative to PD. Previous reports have described PSD for benign, premalignant and some selected malignant conditions of duodenum, and have emphasized this procedure as a safe and effective treatment associated with good quality of life. However, use of PSD for PC is still controversial.Available data about PSD for PC and published data from the follow-up evaluation in the literature are still limited. Given the fact that 20%-60% pT1/pT2 patients have regional lymph node metastasis, regional lymph node dissection should be essential for PC. However, lymphadenectomy has never been promoted as a regular procedure of PSD.The aim of the present study was to investigate the feasibility, safety, and long-term results of PSD with regional lymphadenectomy for early-stage (pTis/pT1/pT2) periampullary cancers.