Patient Perspectives and Overall Satisfaction after Liver Resection for Benign Disease

Abstract

Introduction: Management of benign liver lesions (BLL) is still the object of discussion. It is common for patients to receive multiple opinions about their diagnosis and treatment by different specialists, often opposite and controversial. This study aims to understand patients' decision-making process in electing surgery and assess their satisfaction after resection for BLL. Methods: A 104-question survey was administered to 98 patients who had a resection for BLL in 4 different HPB & Transplant Centers. The first section included 64 questions regarding the initial discovery of the BLL, the decision-making process, and the understanding of the patient's feelings after surgery. The second section, 42 queries, referred to the quality of life. The patient's final diagnosis and outcome were correlated with the survey results using univariate analysis. Results: Among 98 patients who had undergone liver resection for BLL, 70 (71.4%) completed the survey. The median age was 51,71 years (18-75), and females were 63.7%. 21,4% received conflicting information from different health care providers. Surgeons were the bests to describe the BLL to the patient (62.8%), and 30% obtained opinions from multiple surgeons. Respondents were quite or fully satisfied with their decision to have surgery (90%) and the decision-making process (91.4%). Only 58.5% consider their lifestyle better since surgery, and 88,5% will have retaken the same decision. Conclusion: Patients with resected BLL are delighted with the decision to have surgery, regardless of the final diagnosis and outcome. The role of surgeons is critical in the decision-making process.