Surgery of pancreas tumors in children and adolescents: a single institution experience

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study is the surgical management and the clinical and pathological features of patients who underwent pancreatic resection for benign and malignant pancreatic tumors in childhood and adolescence and described the morbidity and mortality of this group of patients. Methods: This is a retrospective review of medical reports of patients ≤19 years with pancreatic tumors who underwent surgery in National Cancer Center, Lima, Peru from January 2000 to January 2019. Results: Thirty-two patients underwent surgery, the mean age was 13.65 years (3-18), 26 patients were women and 6 men. The tumor location was in the head (n = 18), tail (n = 9) and body (n = 5), the mean tumor size 7.34cm (2-13.5cm). The histological types were: solid pseudopapillary tumor (SSP) (n = 27), pancreatoblastoma (n = 3) and neuroendocrine tumor (n = 2) of which one was neuroendocrine carcinoma and another insulinoma. All tumors had R0 in bloc resection, surgical treatment was: pancreaticoduodenectomy (n = 18), distal pancreatectomy (n = 9), central pancreatectomy (n = 4) and tumor enucleation (n = 1). The survival rate according to 5-year Kaplan Meier analysis was 74%. The median duration of follow-up was 33 months. The postoperative mortality was 0%. Conclusions: Radical surgery is a safe treatment in patients with primary tumors of the pancreas with a low mortality rate and postoperative complications. The SSP is the most frequent pathology with a good prognosis.