Surgical treatment of the Zollinger-Ellison syndrome

A consecutive series of patients with Zollinger-Ellison syndrome (ZES) is reported. A total of 53 cases were diagnosed, treated, and followed by one department during the period 1971-1990. Curative surgery was considered in all cases after suppression of acid secretion and after localization of the tumors. Exploratory laparotomy was not employed. Of the 53 patients 13 (24%) died from metastatic gastrinoma during the study. Tumors were ultimately located in 31 of the patients, and 21 of these patients were operated. A total of 12 patients (21%) were cured. The best results were obtained after Whipple pancreaticoduodenectomy in patients with small tumors located after percutaneous transhepatic portography with blood sampling for gastrin assay. In this group 9 of 10 operated patients were cured. Multiple endocrine neoplasia type I did not seem to preclude curative resection. The findings support an aggressive attitude toward local diagnosis and surgical treatment in ZES patients, but they also stress the need for improvements in methods for localizing tumors.