[Treatment outcomes for patients with papilla of Vater cancer]

Cancer of the papilla of Vater is a relatively rare disease. It is difficult to separate from other periampullary tumours at the time of diagnosis. Recent studies have shown that patients with cancer of the papilla tend survive longer than patients with pancreatic cancer and cancers of biliary and duodenal origin. The aim of this study was to compare our results with those reported in the international literature.

The study included all patients who were referred with cancer of the papilla to the Department of Surgical Gastroenterology, Odense University Hospital, between 1995 and 2005. The data were collected retrospectively from hospital and departmental databases.

Among the 35 patients, 30 underwent operation. A total of 27 had a Whipple resection performed, 26 of whom were radical resections. Three patients had a palliative gastroenteroanastomosis performed. Postoperative mortality was 7%, and the 1, 3 and 5-year survival was 74%, 59% and 43%, respectively. Resected patients without lymph node involvement had an estimated 5-year survival of 58%.

The estimated 5-year survival of over 40% in resected patients was comparable with that reported in international studies. We found a significantly higher 5-year survival in patients without lymph node involvement, and the general prognosis for patients with cancer of the papilla was better than the prognosis reported for other periampullary tumours.