Comment on “Repetitive transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) of liver metastases from gastric cancer: Local control and survival results”: Will there be clinical implications in the future?

Liver metastases of gastric cancer determine the poor prognosis. Until now The expediency of their surgical removal has been controversial. However, according to a number of studies, the removal of potentially operable isolated liver metastases allows a significant increase of overall and relapse-free survival in some cases. The review is dedicated to the analysis of prognostic factors that allow selecting patients for surgical removal of liver metastases of gastric cancer. The main criteria are: effective perioperative chemotherapy; stage under T4, N0, absence of lymphovascular invasion, absence of peritoneal dissemination, number less than 3, size up to 4 cm, localization of metastases in one lobe, low level of cancer markers CA 19-9 and CEA.

Download Full-text

Long-Term Survival of Two Patients with Liver Metastases from Advanced Gastric Cancer Treated with Radiofrequency Ablation and Chemotherapy

Case Reports in Oncology ◽

10.1159/000507849 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 67-72

Author(s):

Sung Jin Oh

Keyword(s):

Gastric Cancer ◽

Radiofrequency Ablation ◽

Liver Metastases ◽

Advanced Gastric Cancer ◽

Systemic Chemotherapy ◽

Subtotal Gastrectomy ◽

Hepatic Metastases ◽

Term Survival ◽

Long Term Survival

Liver metastasis from gastric cancer has a very poor prognosis. Herein, we present two cases of liver metastases (synchronous and metachronous) from advanced gastric cancer. In the first case, the patient underwent radical subtotal gastrectomy. Liver metastases occurred 6 months after surgery while the patient was receiving adjuvant chemotherapy, but two hepatic tumors were successfully removed by radiofrequency ablation (RFA). In the second case, liver metastases occurred 15 months after surgery for gastric cancer. The patient also received RFA for one hepatic tumor, and other suspicious metastatic tumors were treated with systemic chemotherapy. Although these case presentations are limited for the efficacy of RFA treatment with systemic chemotherapy for hepatic metastases from gastric cancer, our findings showed long-term survival (overall survival for 108 and 67 months, respectively) of the affected patients, without recurrence. Therefore, we suggest that RFA treatment with systemic chemotherapy could be an effective alternative treatment modality for hepatic metastases from gastric cancer.

Download Full-text

Efficacy of Surgery for the Treatment of Gastric Cancer Liver Metastases: A Systematic Review of the Literature and Meta-Analysis of Prognostic Factors

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10051141 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 1141

Author(s):

Gianpaolo Marte ◽

Andrea Tufo ◽

Francesca Steccanella ◽

Ester Marra ◽

Piera Federico ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gastric Cancer ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Prognostic Factors ◽

Liver Metastases ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Multidisciplinary Treatment ◽

Review Of The Literature ◽

Term Survival ◽

The Impact

Background: In the last 10 years, the management of patients with gastric cancer liver metastases (GCLM) has changed from chemotherapy alone, towards a multidisciplinary treatment with liver surgery playing a leading role. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to assess the efficacy of hepatectomy for GCLM and to analyze the impact of related prognostic factors on long-term outcomes. Methods: The databases PubMed (Medline), EMBASE, and Google Scholar were searched for relevant articles from January 2010 to September 2020. We included prospective and retrospective studies that reported the outcomes after hepatectomy for GCLM. A systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis of prognostic factors was performed. Results: We included 40 studies, including 1573 participants who underwent hepatic resection for GCLM. Post-operative morbidity and 30-day mortality rates were 24.7% and 1.6%, respectively. One-year, 3-years, and 5-years overall survival (OS) were 72%, 37%, and 26%, respectively. The 1-year, 3-years, and 5-years disease-free survival (DFS) were 44%, 24%, and 22%, respectively. Well-moderately differentiated tumors, pT1–2 and pN0–1 adenocarcinoma, R0 resection, the presence of solitary metastasis, unilobar metastases, metachronous metastasis, and chemotherapy were all strongly positively associated to better OS and DFS. Conclusion: In the present study, we demonstrated that hepatectomy for GCLM is feasible and provides benefits in terms of long-term survival. Identification of patient subgroups that could benefit from surgical treatment is mandatory in a multidisciplinary setting.

Download Full-text

HIFU for the treatment of gastric cancer with liver metastases with unsuitable indications for hepatectomy and radiofrequency ablation: a prospective and propensity score-matched study

BMC Surgery ◽

10.1186/s12893-021-01307-y ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Bin Zhou ◽

Ning He ◽

Jiaze Hong ◽

Tong Yang ◽

Derry Minyao Ng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gastric Cancer ◽

Radiofrequency Ablation ◽

Propensity Score ◽

Adverse Events ◽

Liver Metastases ◽

Hepatic Metastasis ◽

Focused Ultrasound ◽

Progression Free Survival ◽

High Intensity Focused Ultrasound ◽

Entire Cohort

Abstract Background The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy and safety of high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) in gastric cancer with liver metastasis (GCLM) patients who were contraindicated for either hepatectomy or radiofrequency ablation (RFA). Methods This is a prospective, observational study on GCLM patients with 1–3 liver metastases. The primary gastric lesions were thoroughly resected and any case that exhibited extra-hepatic metastasis was excluded. A 1:2:2 propensity score-matching analysis was performed using a logistic regression model on the HIFU group, best supportive care (BSC) group, and palliative chemotherapy (PC) group. The primary endpoints include progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results Forty patients were finally included, there were 8 cases in HIFU group, 16 cases in BSC group, and 16 cases in PC group. The median follow-up time for the entire cohort was 10 months. The median PFS was 16.5 months in HIFU group, 2 months in BSC group, and 5 months in PC group. The median OS was 27.5 months in the HIFU group, 7 months in the BSC group, and 11.5 months in the PC group. Additionally, no grade 3 or higher adverse events occurred in the HIFU group. Conclusion The results of this study showed that HIFU treatment could improve the long-term prognosis of GCLM patients without a significant increase in the occurrence of adverse events. Compared with PC and BSC, HIFU is the preferred treatment option when GCLM patients without extra-hepatic metastasis are unable to undergo either surgery or RFA.

Download Full-text