Cytoreductive surgery plus hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy to treat peritoneal carcinomatosis from gastric cancer: a clinical study of 110 patients

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of cytoreductive surgery plus hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS+ HIPEC) in patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis from gastric cancer (GCPC). Methods: The clinical data and follow-up results of GCPC patients treated with CRS+ HIPEC were collected for a retrospective analysis. The primary endpoint was survival rate and the secondary endpoint was safety. Results: A total of 110 GCPC patients accepted CRS+ HIPEC, with a median overall survival (OS) of 13.1 months, and with 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates of 56.4%, 24.9%, 11.2%, and 7.8%, respectively. The perioperative mortality was 0.9%, and the morbidity of serious adverse events was 8.2%. Univariate analysis showed that gender, tumor marker before surgery, PC type, length of surgery, postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy, peritoneal cancer index (PCI), completeness of cytoreduction, HIPEC temperature, and ascites had a significant impact on OS. Multivariate Cox-analysis showed that completeness of cytoreduction, ascites, and postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy were independent factors of OS. Conclusion: CRS+ HIPEC improves survival for GCPC patients with normal preoperative tumor markers, low PCI, no ascites and synchronous PC. Stringent patient selection and complete CRS are two key factors for better survival.