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Objectives: Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is associated with a high risk of postoperative complications and mortality. The aim of this study was to compare postoperative morbidity after PD in patients undergoing resections for pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (PanNENs) with patients undergoing the same resection for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC)., Methods: Data of 566 patients from 3 European tertiary referral centers between 1998 and 2014 were considered., Results: Overall, 566 patients (179 with PanNENs, 387 with PDAC) who underwent PD were analyzed. Patients with PanNENs were significantly younger (56 vs 64 years, P < 0.0001). The consistency of the pancreas was soft in 147 patients (82%) with PanNENs and in 162 patients (42%) with PDAC (P < 0.0001). Patients in the PanNENs group had a significantly higher rate of pancreatic fistula (P < 0.0001), bile leak (P = 0.004), abdominal collection (P = 0.017), and development of sepsis (P = 0.042). No differences in terms of overall postoperative complications, median length of stay, and in-hospital mortality were found. On multivariate analysis sex (male), PanNENs indication, blood transfusion, and a soft pancreatic texture were independent predictors of pancreatic fistula after PD., Conclusions: Pancreaticoduodenectomy for PanNENs is associated with higher rate of surgical-specific postoperative complications than those for PDAC.

Background: Sporadic nonfunctioning pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (NF-PNETs) are increasingly diagnosed as incidentalomas, and their resection is usually recommended. The prognostic significance of this diagnosis feature is poorly studied, and management of these tumors remains controversial. Clinical, pathologic characteristics and outcome of resected incidentally diagnosed NF-PNET (Inc) were compared with resected symptomatic NF-PNET (Symp) to better assess their biologic behavior and tailor their management., Methods: From 1994 to 2010, 108 patients underwent resection for sporadic nonmetastatic NF-PNET. Diagnosis was considered as incidental in patients with no abdominal symptoms or symptoms unlikely to be related to tumor mass. Patients with Inc were compared with patients with Symp, regarding demographics, postoperative course, pathology, and disease-free survival (DFS)., Results: Of the 108 patients, 65 (61%) had incidentally diagnosed tumors. Pancreas-sparing pancreatectomies (enucleation/central pancreatectomy) were performed more frequently in Inc (62% vs 30%, P = .001). Inc tumors were more frequently <20 mm (65% vs 42%, P = .019), staged T1 (62% vs 33%, P = .0001), node negative (85% vs 60%; P = .005), and grade 1 (66% vs 33%, P = .0001). One postoperative death occurred in the Inc group, and postoperative morbidity was similar between the two groups (60% vs 65%, P = .59). DFS was substantially better in the Inc group (5-year DFS = 92% vs 82%, P = .0016)., Conclusion: Incidentally diagnosed NF-PNETs are associated with less aggressive features compared with symptomatic lesions but cannot always be considered to be benign. Operative resection remains recommended for most. Incidentally diagnosed NF-PNET may be good candidates for pancreas-sparing pancreatectomies., (Copyright © 2014 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Importance: Nonfunctioning pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (NF-PanNETs) are often indolent neoplasms without lymph node (LN) metastasis at diagnosis. Therefore, in patients with low risk of LN metastasis, the extent of surgery and lymphadenectomy could be limited and follow-up adjusted to the very low risk of relapse., Objective: To construct a predicting model to assess the risk of pN+ prior to surgical resection for NF-PanNETs using preoperative retrievable variables., Design: Retrospective review using multiple logistic regression analysis to construct predictive model of pN+ based on preoperatively available data., Setting: The combined prospective databases of the Surgical Departments of the University of Verona, Verona, Italy, and Beaujon Hospital, Clichy, France, were queried for clinical and pathological data., Participants: All patients with resected (R0 or R1), pathologically confirmed NF-PanNETs between January 1, 1993 and December 31, 2009., Main Outcome and Measure: Risk of lymph node metastases in patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors., Results: Among 181 patients, nodal metastases were reported in 55 patients (30%) and were associated with decreased 5-year disease-free survival (70% vs 97%, P < .001). Multivariable analysis showed that independent factors associated with nodal metastasis were radiological nodal status (rN) (odds ratio [OR], 5.58; P < .001) and tumor grade (NET-G2 vs NET-G1: OR, 4.87; P < .001) (first model). When the tumor grade was excluded, rN (OR, 4.73; P = .001) and radiological tumor size larger than 4 cm (OR, 2.67; P = .03) were independent predictors of nodal metastasis (second model). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the first and second models were 80% and 74%, respectively., Conclusions and Relevance: Patients with NF-PanNET-G1 have a very low risk of pN+ in the absence of radiological signs of node involvement. When preoperative grading assessment is not achieved, the radiological size of the lesion is a powerful alternative predictor of pN+. The risk of pathological nodal involvement in patients with NF-PanNETs can be accurately estimated by a clinical predictive model.

Background: Parenchyma-sparing pancreatectomy (PSP), including enucleation and central pancreatectomy, has been investigated as an alternative to standard resection for pancreatic endocrine neoplasm, but the benefit/risk of these procedures remains little known., Methods: From 1998 to 2010, among 197 patients operated for well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, 67 underwent PSP (45 enucleations and 22 central pancreatectomies) and 66 standard resections (35 pancreaticoduodenectomies and 31 distal pancreatectomies) for a tumor below 4 cm, without synchronous distant metastasis. Groups were compared regarding postoperative morbidity, mortality, long-term pancreatic function, and survival calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method., Results: Tumors operated by PSP had a median size of 15 mm, were mainly incidentally diagnosed (n = 46, 69 %), and nonfunctioning (n = 55, 82 %). Overall morbidity rate was higher after PSP than standard resection (SR) (76 vs 58 %, p = 0.0028), including more frequent pancreatic fistulas (69 vs 42 %, p = 0.003). Postoperative diabetes was less frequent following PSP than pancreaticoduodenectomy (5 vs 21 %; p = 0.022) but equivalent to the one observed after distal pancreatectomy (4 %, p = 1). Exocrine insufficiency was significantly less frequent after PSP than SR (3 vs 32 %; p < 0.0001). The overall and recurrence-free 5-year survival after PSP for nonfunctioning tumors was 96 and 98 %, respectively., Conclusion: In selected patients, with small and low-grade tumors, PSP are associated with excellent overall and recurrence-free survivals. These procedures are associated with an increased postoperative morbidity but an excellent postoperative pancreatic function. Therefore, they should be considered as a valid therapeutic option in selected well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors.