Evaluating adherence to literature-derived systemic therapy standards for resectable intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma:
Brady Russell1, Prejesh Philips1, Charles R Scoggins1
1The Hiram C. Polk, Jr., MD Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY, 40292, USA.
Importance:
Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) is frequently grouped with other biliary tract cancers (BTC) in studies evaluating neoadjuvant and adjuvant systemic therapies, despite known biologic and clinical heterogeneity. As a result, treatment paradigms for resectable iCCA are largely extrapolated from mixed BTC populations, and iCCA-specific randomized data remain limited.
Objective:
To evaluate whether receipt of systemic therapy consistent with literature-derived standards is associated with overall survival (OS) among patients undergoing resection or ablation for iCCA at a single institution.
Design:
A systematic review of the literature was performed to identify studies informing systemic therapy regimens and treatment duration relevant to iCCA. Based on trial design and treatment exposure across these studies, thresholds for therapy adequacy were defined as ≥2 months of neoadjuvant therapy and ≥6 months of adjuvant therapy using gemcitabine-based regimens or capecitabine. These definitions were applied retrospectively to a prospectively maintained institutional database of patients treated for iCCA between April 1997 and June 2025. OS was compared between patients receiving adequate versus inadequate therapy in both the neoadjuvant and adjuvant settings.
Results:
Eighty-two patients underwent resection or ablation for iCCA, with a median OS of 53.6 months (95% CI 33.9-84.6). Among patients with evaluable neoadjuvant treatment data (n = 34), those receiving ≥2 months of therapy demonstrated a numerically longer median OS compared with those receiving shorter or no therapy (77.6 vs. 38.1 months), though this difference did not reach statistical significance. Among patients with evaluable adjuvant treatment data (n = 38), receipt of ≥6 months of adjuvant therapy was associated with longer median OS compared with inadequate or no adjuvant therapy (93.6 vs. 48.4 months).
Conclusions:
In this single-institution cohort, receipt of systemic therapy consistent with literature-derived standards was associated with prolonged overall survival following surgical treatment of iCCA, particularly in the adjuvant setting. These findings support continued adherence to established adjuvant treatment durations and suggest a potential role for neoadjuvant therapy in select patients with resectable iCCA. Prospective, iCCA-specific trials are needed to define optimal perioperative systemic treatment strategies.
