Efficacy and safety of adjuvant therapy after curative surgery for ampullary carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Survival benefit of adjuvant treatment for ampullary cancer with lymph nodal involvement: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The efficacy of adjuvant treatment (AT) in ampullary cancer (AmC) remains controversial. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the role of AT for AmC.

DATA SOURCES

A comprehensive systematic search was performed in PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases. Studies comparing overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) of patients who underwent AT or not following AmC resection were included.

RESULTS

A total of 3971 patients in 21 studies were analyzed. Overall pooled data showed no significant difference in effect on the OS by AT [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.998, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.768-1.297]. No significant difference in recurrence between the AT and non-AT (nAT) groups was noted (HR = 1.158, 95% CI: 0.764-1.755). In subgroup analysis, patients who received AT showed favorable outcomes in the OS compared with those who received nAT in nodal-positive AmC (HR = 0.627, 95% CI: 0.451-0.870). Neither AT consisted of adjuvant chemotherapy with radiotherapy (HR = 0.804, 95% CI: 0.563-1.149) nor AT with adjuvant chemotherapy (HR = 0.883, 95% CI: 0.642-1.214) showed any significant effect on the OS.

CONCLUSIONS

The effect of AT in AmC on survival and recurrence did not show a significant benefit. Furthermore, effectiveness according to AT strategies did not show enhancement in survival. AT had an advantage in survival compared with nAT strategy in nodal-positive AmC. In cases of AmC with positive lymph nodal involvement, AT may be warranted regardless of detailed strategies.

Neoadjuvant Therapy for Duodenal and Ampullary Adenocarcinoma: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

The role of systemic therapy in the management of ampullary (AA) and duodenal adenocarcinoma (DA) remains poorly understood. This study sought to synthesize current evidence supporting the use of neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) in AA and DA.

METHODS

The study searched PubMed, Cochrane Library (Wiley), Embase (Elsevier), CINAHL (EBSCO), and ClinicalTrials.gov databases for observational or randomized studies published between 2002 and 2022 evaluating survival outcomes for patients with non-metastatic AA or DA who received systemic therapy and surgical resection. The data extracted included overall survival, progression-free survival, and pathologic response (PR) rate.

RESULTS

From the 347 abstracts identified in this study, 29 reports were reviewed in full, and 15 were included in the final review. The selected studies published from 2007 to 2022 were retrospective. Eight were single-center studies; five used the National Cancer Database (NCDB); and two were European multicenter/national studies. Overall, no studies identified survival differences between NAT and upfront surgery (with or without adjuvant therapy). Two NCDB studies reported longer survival with NAT/AT than with surgery. Five single-center studies reported a significant portion of NAT patients who achieved PR, and one study identified major PR as an independent predictor of survival. Other outcomes associated with NAT included conversion from unresectable to resectable disease, reduced lymph node positivity, and decreased local recurrence rate.

CONCLUSION

Evidence supporting the use of NAT in AA and DA is weak. No randomized studies exist, and observational data show mixed results. For patients with DA and AA, NAT appears safe, but better evidence is needed to understand the preferred multidisciplinary management of DA and AA periampullary malignancies.

Impact of cancer-associated fibroblasts on survival of patients with ampullary carcinoma

Background

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) reportedly enhance the progression of gastrointestinal surgery; however, the role of CAFs in ampullary carcinomas remains poorly examined. This study aimed to investigate the effect of CAFs on the survival of patients with ampullary carcinoma.

Materials and methods

A retrospective analysis of 67 patients who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy between January 2000 and December 2021 was performed. CAFs were defined as spindle-shaped cells that expressed α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and fibroblast activation protein (FAP). The impact of CAFs on survival, including recurrence-free (RFS) and disease-specific survival (DSS), as well as prognostic factors associated with survival, was analyzed.

Results

The high-α-SMA group had significantly worse 5-year RFS (47.6% vs. 82.2%, p = 0.003) and 5-year DSS (67.5% vs. 93.3%, p = 0.01) than the low-α-SMA group. RFS (p = 0.04) and DSS (p = 0.02) in the high-FAP group were significantly worse than those in the low-FAP group. Multivariable analyses found that high α-SMA expression was an independent predictor of RFS [hazard ratio (HR): 3.68; 95% confidence intervals (CI): 1.21–12.4; p = 0.02] and DSS (HR: 8.54; 95% CI: 1.21–170; p = 0.03).

Conclusions

CAFs, particularly α-SMA, can be useful predictors of survival in patients undergoing radical resection for ampullary carcinomas.

Principles of Management of Patients With Ampullary Adenocarcinoma

Ampullary adenocarcinoma is an uncommon neoplasm that most often requires pancreatoduodenectomy, has a less than optimal cure rate, and is a cancer for which the impact of multidisciplinary care remains unclear. Although often believed to have a better prognosis than pancreatic cancer, ampullary cancer remains a highly lethal disease. Given its rarity and the typical lack of surrounding vessel invasion, a surgery-first approach has most commonly been used in treatment sequencing. The literature has yielded conflicting results regarding the use of adjuvant therapy. Neoadjuvant therapy has received little attention but offers promise with regard to pathologic downstaging, particularly when chemotherapy is combined with radiation. Genetic evaluation may help guide future therapies, and multi-institutional trials are needed to develop optimal treatment sequencing and directed at the 2 specific histologic subtypes.

Das Ampullenkarzinom – prognostische und therapeutische Unterschiede zum duktalen Adenokarzinom des Pankreas

Das Ampullenkarzinom stellt eine seltene, jedoch in seiner Inzidenz steigende Entität gastrointestinaler Tumoren dar. Aufgrund der anatomischen Lokalisation führt es vergleichsweise früh im Erkrankungsprozess zu einer biliären Gangobstruktion, wodurch eine schnellere Diagnosestellung erleichtert und eine bessere Prognose bedingt werden. Adenome der Ampulla hepatopancreatica und der Papilla duodeni major stellen Vorläuferläsionen des Ampullenkarzinoms dar und besitzen ein 30–40%iges Risiko zur malignen Transformation. Diese Entartungstendenz begründet die Notwendigkeit zur vollständigen/kompletten Abtragung im Rahmen der endoskopischen Therapie. Der Erfolg der endoskopischen Papillektomie wird durch eine Ausdehnung des Befundes in den Pankreashauptgang oder Ductus choledochus erschwert. Endoskopisch nicht sanierbare Adenome und Ampullenkarzinome stellen Indikationen für chirurgische Therapieverfahren dar. Grundsätzlich sollte für benigne Befunde die transduodenale Papillenresektion bervorzugt werden, für maligne Befunde stellt die Pankreaskopfresektion mit systematischer Lymphadenektomie und Level-II-Dissektion des Mesopankreas die onkologisch korrekte Operation dar. Prognostische Faktoren beim Ampullenkarzinom sind: der pankreatobiliäre Subtyp, eine Lymphknoteninfiltration und eine Perineuralscheideninvasion. Die Differenzierung in histopathologische Subtypen gewinnt zunehmend in der Indikationsstellung zur Systemtherapie an Bedeutung. Der Einsatz der neoadjuvanten und adjuvanten Therapie für das Ampullenkarzinom konnte bisher nicht klar definiert werden. Jedoch scheinen Patienten mit dem pankreatobiliären Subtyp oder anderen prognoselimitierenden Faktoren von einer adjuvanten Therapie zu profitieren. Zukünftige Studien werden zur zielgerichteten Therapiefestlegung benötigt.

Survival after curative pancreaticoduodenectomy for ampullary adenocarcinoma in a South American population: A retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Ampullary adenocarcinoma (AAC) is a rare neoplasm that accounts for only 0.2% of all gastrointestinal cancers. Its incidence rate is lower than 6 cases per million people. Different prognostic factors have been described for AAC and are associated with a wide range of survival rates. However, these studies have been exclusively conducted in patients originating from Asian, European, and North American countries.

AIM

To evaluate the histopathologic predictors of overall survival (OS) in South American patients with AAC treated with curative pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD).

METHODS

We analyzed retrospective data from 83 AAC patients who underwent curative (R0) PD at the National Cancer Institute of Peru between January 2010 and October 2020 to identify histopathologic predictors of OS.

RESULTS

Sixty-nine percent of patients had developed intestinal-type AAC (69%), 23% had pancreatobiliary-type AAC, and 8% had other subtypes. Forty-one percent of patients were classified as Stage I, according to the AJCC 8th Edition. Recurrence occurred primarily in the liver (n = 8), peritoneum (n = 4), and lung (n = 4). Statistical analyses indicated that T3 tumour stage [hazard ratio (HR) of 6.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) of 2.5-16.3, P < 0.001], lymph node metastasis (HR: 4.5, 95%CI: 1.8-11.3, P = 0.001), and pancreatobiliary type (HR: 2.7, 95%CI: 1.2-6.2, P = 0.025) were independent predictors of OS.

CONCLUSION

Extended tumour stage (T3), pancreatobiliary type, and positive lymph node metastasis represent independent predictors of a lower OS rate in South American AAC patients who underwent curative PD.