Short term chemotherapy followed by radiofrequency ablation in stage III pancreatic cancer: results from a single center

Abstract

Background: Neo-adjuvant chemotherapy (CHT) has gained increasing importance in resectable and borderline resectable pancreatic cancer leading to a better performing surgery when we look at negative resection margins and selection of patients with less aggressive disease. We apply this principle to patients with Stage III (LAC) pancreatic cancer undergoing RFA and try to select patients who may benefit from a local treatment.

Methods: All patients affected by LAC were treated with RFA for a stable disease after a short CHT. Postoperative morbidity and mortality were evaluated together with overall survival (OS) and disease specific survival (DSS).

Results: We consecutively treated 57 patients affected by LAC. Median duration of CHT before RFA was 5 months. The postoperative mortality rate was zero. Overall morbidity was 14 % with RFA-related morbidity of 3.5 %. The OS and DSS were 19 months and when compared to a similar population who received RFA as up front treatment, there was no difference.

Conclusions: Our results do not support the adoption of a short CHT as a way to identify patients to treat with RFA with the most benefit. Based on this and by knowing the role of immune modulation after RFA and its specific involvement in pancreatic carcinoma, we can propose RFA as upfront treatment.

Keywords: locally advanced pancreatic cancer; pancreatic tumor ablation; pre-operative chemotherapy.