5 ways of surgical treatment for pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer progresses very quickly from the early stage to the late stage. Most patients are diagnosed in the late stage, and the chance of surgical resection is small. Surgical treatment requires different surgical methods according to the different stages of the disease and the scope of local invasion of the tumor lesions. The following 5 types are common:

1. Total pancreatectomy

Patients with pancreatic head cancer who are under 65 years old and whose surgical exploration shows that the lesion belongs to stage I or II (without lymph node metastasis) can undergo total pancreatectomy.

2. Tail pancreatectomy

Tail pancreatectomy is a commonly used method for treating pancreatic tail tumors and is suitable for pancreatic tail cancer without distant metastasis.

3. Pancreaticoduodenectomy

If the tumor is located in the head of the pancreas, with no metastasis to the porta hepatis, around the celiac artery, at the root of the mesentery, or at distant lymph nodes, and no invasion of the hepatic artery, superior mesenteric artery, or inferior vena cava, and no or only partial invasion of the portal vein, and no organ metastasis, pancreaticoduodenectomy can be performed.

4. Pancreatic cancer surgery combined with vascular resection

In the past, it was believed that tumor invasion of the portal vein and superior mesenteric vein system was a contraindication to surgical resection, so the surgical resection rate was relatively low. In the past 20 years, with the strengthening of preoperative and postoperative treatment and the improvement of surgical operation technology, tumor invasion of the portal vein system is no longer a contraindication to surgical resection. This method has significantly improved the surgical resection rate of pancreatic cancer and periampullary cancer.

5. Pylorus-preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy

The main conditions for performing pylorus-preserving pancreatoduodenectomy for pancreatic head cancer are: the lesion has not yet invaded the pylorus and duodenal bulb, and there is no pyloric lymph node metastasis. In addition, pylorus-preserving pancreatoduodenectomy can also be performed for pancreatic head tumors with low malignancy.