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. 2022 May 2;6(3):zrac076.
doi: 10.1093/bjsopen/zrac076.

Long-term follow-up of patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery for phaeochromocytoma

Patrick J O'Dwyer  1 , Cindy Chew  2 , Samer Zino  3 , Michael G Serpell  4
Affiliations

Long-term follow-up of patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery for phaeochromocytoma

Patrick J O'Dwyer et al. BJS Open. .

Abstract

Introduction: Phaeochromocytomas are rare tumours with a recurrence after open surgery ranging between 6-23 per cent. Long-term follow-up studies after laparoscopic surgery for phaeochromocytoma are lacking. The aim of this study was to look at the long-term oncological outcome of a consecutive series of patients from a single centre undergoing laparoscopic surgery for a phaeochromocytoma.

Methods: Demographic data on all patients with an adrenal tumour or paraganglioma were prospectively kept on a database between September 1999 and December 2017. Electronic hospital records, including imaging from a national linked archiving and communication system, were reviewed for patients with a phaeochromocytoma in November 2021.

Results: During the study interval 135 patients with a phaeochromocytoma were operated on in the unit, of which 118 (87.4 per cent) were attempted laparoscopically. Five (4.2 per cent) were converted to open surgery, whereas 117 had a potentially curative operation. There was no peri- or postoperative mortality. At a median follow-up of 10 (interquartile range 6-12.9) years, only 3 (2.6 per cent) patients died from metastatic phaeochromocytoma. One further patient developed lymph node metastases, which were removed at open surgery. No patient had a local recurrence and the only significant predictor of recurrence was the presence of lymph node metastases (P < 0.001). Two patients developed a contralateral adrenal phaeochromocytoma, while one of these also had a paraganglioma. The Kaplan-Meier estimate of phaeochromocytoma-free survival was 96 per cent (95 per cent c.i. 92.2 to 98.8) at 5 years and 92 per cent (95 per cent c.i. 86.7 to 97.3) at 10 years.

Conclusion: This study demonstrates that long-term oncological outcomes of laparoscopic surgery for patients with a phaeochromocytoma are at least as good as that with an open operation.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Outcome of patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery *One patient is currently receiving chemotherapy for lung cancer.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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