[Liver oligometastases: from radiological concepts to surgical practice]

Liver metastasis is one of the most common pathways of malignant tumor dissemination and a leading cause of cancer-related mortality. With continuous advances in surgical techniques and equipment,improved systemic therapies,and the widespread adoption of multidisciplinary treatment strategies,the concept of oligometastasis-originally proposed by radiation oncologists to describe a transitional state between localized disease and widespread systemic metastasis-has been increasingly recognized and applied by surgical oncologists. This has led to the development of metastasis-directed surgical interventions that have yielded encouraging clinical outcomes. However,due to the heterogeneity of primary tumors and the liver's unique anatomical and immunological characteristics,standardized diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for hepatic oligometastases have yet to be established. This review provides a systematic overview of the evolution of the oligometastatic concept and discusses recent surgical advances in managing liver oligometastases across various primary tumor types.