Resection of Hepatic Metastasis from Colorectal Cancer : Survival, Factors Influencing Prognosis, and Follow-up
The purpose of this retrospective study was to analyze the surgical results of hepatic resection in our patients with colorectal hepatic metastasis. During a 26-year period, 223 patients among 1,484 patients with colorectal cancer suffered liver metastasis. In 44 curatively resected patients, the one-, three- and five-year cumulative survival rates were 85.9%, 44.9% and 23.0%, respectively. The prognostic importance of seven factors was eveluated. Synchronous or metachronous resection, the type of liver resection, and histologic differentiation did not influence the prognosis, whereas the number and size of metastases, and lymph node involvement did significantly affect prognosis as single factors. The mean diameter of metastatic lesions in the liver was 2.5 cm in the synchronous group and 4.5 cm in the metachronous group, the difference being significant (p=0.0005). The presence of tumors with large diameters in the metachronous group might mean our failure of early detection of the recurrence of hepatic metastases. It is necessary to make steady efforts such as introducing regular follow-up imaging of colorectal cancer. The median interval between the primary operation and liver metastasis resection was 15.7 months in the lymph node involvement group and 37.7 months in the no lymph node involvement group. In 19 patients among 21 metachronously resected patients, the hepatic resection was done within three years. In conclusion, it was considered that hepatectomy could be done safely, that detection of an earlier lesion could improve the surgical results, and that follow-up for liver metastasis should be done intensively between 12 and 36 months after colorectal cancer surgery.
