The faith of non-surveilled pancreatic cysts: a bicentric retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Incidental discovery of pancreatic cystic neoplasms (PCLs) is a common and steadily increasing occurrence. The aim of this study was to investigate a cohort of patients presenting with incidentally detected PCLs which were not included in a surveillance protocol, and to compare their risk of malignant evolution with that of systematically surveilled lesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A population of PCLs which did not receive surveillance over a period >10 years (population A) was selected at the Medical University of Vienna. A group of "low risk" branch duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm ≤15 mm in size upon diagnosis undergoing a regular follow-up of at least 5 years at the University of Verona was selected as control (population B). The incidence of pancreatic cancer (PC), cumulative risk of PC and disease-specific survival were compared. RESULTS: Overall, 376 patients with non-surveilled PCLs were included in study group A and compared to 299 patients in group B. This comparison resulted in similar incidence rates of PC (1.6% vs 1.7%, p = 0.938), a strong similarity in terms of disease-specific mortality rates (1.3% vs 0.3%, p = 0.171) and the 5- and 10-year cumulative risk of PC (≅ 1% and 2%, p = 0.589) and DSS (≅ 100% and 98%, p = 0.050). CONCLUSION: The "price to pay" for a negligence-based policy in the population of non-surveilled PCLs was reasonable, and the incidence of PC was comparable to that reported for a population of low-risk cysts enrolled to a standardized surveillance protocol.

Actual malignancy risk of either operated or non-operated presumed mucinous cystic neoplasms of the pancreas under surveillance.

BACKGROUND: Despite the low malignant potential of pancreatic mucinous cystic neoplasms (MCNs), surgery is still performed. The aim of this pragmatic study was to assess the outcome of surgery and surveillance for patients presenting with a presumed MCN at the first evaluation. METHODS: Data for patients with a presumed MCN observed from 2000 to 2016 at the Verona Pancreas Institute and San Raffaele Hospital were extracted from prospective databases. The endpoints were risk of malignancy at pathology and rate of misdiagnosis for the surgical series, expressed as an odds ratio (OR) with 95 per cent confidence interval, and disease-specific survival (DSS) for the surveillance cohort investigated by the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: A total of 424 patients were identified. In the surgical series (229 patients), the rate of misdiagnosis was 19.2 per cent. The rate of malignant MCNs was 10.9 per cent (25 patients). The overall rate of malignancy, including misdiagnoses, was 11.3 per cent (26 patients). Predictors of malignancy were mural nodules (OR 27.75, 95 per cent c.i. 4.44-173.61; P < 0.001), size at least 50 mm (OR 13.39, 2.01 to 89.47; P = 0.007), and carbohydrate antigen 19.9 level (OR 3.98, 1.19 to 13.30; P = 0.025). In the absence of mural nodules and enhancing walls, none of the resected presumed MCNs smaller than 50 mm were malignant. Only patients with high-risk stigmata undergoing surgery experienced a significantly reduced 5-year DSS compared with all other patients (88 versus 100 per cent; P = 0.031). CONCLUSION: Presumed MCNs with mural nodules, enhancing walls or cysts of 50 mm or larger should be considered for upfront surgical resection owing to the high risk of malignancy. In the absence of these features, the incidence of malignancy is negligible, favouring surveillance in selected patients given the low risk of malignancy and the high rate of misdiagnosis. LAY SUMMARY: Malignant degeneration of presumed pancreatic mucinous cystic neoplasms takes several years, if it occurs at all. Mural nodules, enhancing walls or cysts of 50 mm or larger call for surgical resection owing to an increased risk of malignancy; otherwise, surveillance seems a good option.

Malignant degeneration of presumed pancreatic mucinous cystic neoplasms takes several years, if it occurs at all. Mural nodules, enhancing walls or cysts of 50 mm or larger call for surgical resection owing to an increased risk of malignancy; otherwise, surveillance seems a good option.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies on BD-IPMNS progression to malignancy.

BACKGROUND: The vast majority of presumed branch-duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (BD-IPMNs) of the pancreas are referred to a surveillance program due to the relatively low risk of malignancy. We aim to evaluate all available data from observational studies focused on the risks of BD-IPMN progression and malignancy to provide vital insights into its management in clinical practice. METHODS: A comprehensive search was conducted at PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science and Embase for observational studies published before January 1st, 2020. The progression of BD-IPMN was defined as the development of worrisome features (WFs) or high-risk stigmata (HRS) during surveillance. Overall malignancy was defined as all malignancies, such as malignant IPMN, concomitant pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and other malignancies, including BD-IPMN with high-grade sec. Baltimore consensus 2015 or BD-IPMN with high-grade dysplasia (carcinoma in situ) sec. WHO 2010. A meta-analysis was performed to investigate the presence of a mural nodule as a possible predictor of malignancy. RESULTS: Twenty-four studies were included, with a total of 8941 patients with a presumed BD-IPMN. The progression rate was 20.2%, and 11.8% underwent surgery, 29.5% of whom showed malignancy at the final pathology. Of those, 78% had malignant IPMNs, and 22% had concomitant pancreatic cancer. Overall, 0.5% had distant metastasis. The meta-analysis showed that the risk of malignancy in the presence of a mural nodule >5 mm had a RR of 5.457 (95% CI 1.404-21.353), while a nonenhancing mural nodule or an enhancing mural nodule < 5 mm had a RR of 5.286 (95% CI 1.805-15.481) of harboring malignancy. CONCLUSION: Most presumed BD-IPMNs entering surveillance do not become malignant. Of those submitted to surgery, concomitant PDAC adds to the overall risk of detecting malignancy.

Hypofractionated Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy With Simultaneous Integrated Boost and Simultaneous Integrated Protection in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

AIMS: To evaluate the safety and feasibility of stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) with simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) and simultaneous integrated protection (SIP) in borderline resectable and locally advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients receiving SBRT following induction chemotherapy from January 2017 to December 2018 were included in this observational analysis. SBRT was delivered in five consecutive daily fractions by administering 30 Gy to the planning target volume while simultaneously delivering a 50 Gy SIB to the tumour-vessel interface. SIP was created by lowering the dose to 25 Gy on the overlap area between the planning target volume and the planning organ at risk volume. The primary end point was acute and late gastrointestinal grade ≥3 toxicity. Secondary end points were freedom from local progression, overall survival and progression-free survival (PFS). RESULTS: Fifty-nine consecutive patients (27 borderline resectable and 32 locally advanced) were included. Fifty-eight patients (98.3%) completed the SBRT planned treatment and 35 patients (59.4%) received surgical resection following SBRT. No acute or late grade ≥3 SBRT-related adverse events were observed. The median follow-up time was 15.1 months in the overall cohort and 18.1 months in censored patients. One- and 2-year freedom from local progression rates were 85% and 80% versus 79.7% and 60.6% in resected and unresected patients, respectively (P = 0.33). The median overall survival and PFS were 30.2 months and 19 months from diagnosis and 19.1 months and 10.7 months from SBRT in the entire cohort. Resected patients had improved 2-year overall survival rates (72.5% versus 49%, P = 0.012) and median PFS (13 months versus 5 months; P < 0.001) relative to unresected patients. There was no survival difference between borderline resectable and locally advanced patients. CONCLUSIONS: SBRT with SIB/SIP had an excellent toxicity profile and could be administered safely on pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma patients, even in a total neoadjuvant setting.

Branch Duct Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms: Recommendations for Follow-Up and Surgery.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Pancreatic cysts are increasingly diagnosed, mainly during abdominal imaging performed for other reasons. Between pancreatic cystic neoplasm, intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms are the most common pre-malignant entities. Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms involving side branches overall harbor a low risk of malignancy, and in the recent past, a progressively more conservative approach has been consolidated. Purpose of this report is to summarize the evidence supporting the current practice for the management of branch duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm and to offer a useful practical guide from first observation to post-operative follow-up. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Review of the most important scientific literature on intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms was made. In this review article, we also report the experience of a high volume center in managing Pancreatic cystic neoplasms. RESULTS: The correct management during surveillance still is a matter of debate, since many guidelines have been published suggesting different clinical approaches. Recently, follow-up discontinuation has also been proposed in selected cases. CONCLUSION: Despite significant improvements made by the increase of evidence, selecting surgical candidates because of an increased risk of malignant progression remains an unsolved issue and a hot topic for pancreatologists.