Factors influencing the late results of operation for carcinoma of the pancreas.

In 151 patients with carcinoma of the pancreas presenting at the surgical clinic of Tohoku University Hospital, predominant factors affecting postoperative prognosis were studied with relation to the stages of the disease. The presence of lymph node metastasis and of cancer invasion to the pancreatic capsule, particularly the latter, was apparently a significant factor most crucially affecting the survival of the patients who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy. The mean survival periods of resected patients were 16.4 months for those with carcinoma of the head of the pancreas and 11.0 months for those with carcinoma of the body and tail of the pancreas, distinctly longer than after palliative operations. However, in patients with stage III disease, pancreatoduodenectomy tended to lead to a shorter period of survival, suggesting that surgery at that stage is generally unpromising for cure.