The role of adjuvant therapy after R0 resection for patients with intrahepatic and perihilar cholangiocarcinoma.

Abstract

302 Background: There is still debated regarding the optimal treatment strategy in cholangiocarcinoma (CC) after curative resection. The aim of this study was to analyze the role of adjuvant therapy in R0-resected intrahepatic and perihilar CC. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients who underwent R0 resection for intrahepatic and perihilar CC between January 2001 and December 2013 at six cancer centers. Adjuvant therapy consisted of chemotherapy (CT), chemoradiotherapy (CRT), or radiotherapy (RT). The outcomes of our study were recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Multivariable Cox proportional hazards model was used to identify prognostic factors for survival. Results: A total of 137 patients were included in the analysis; 58.4% of patients had intrahepatic CC and 25.5% had lymph node involvement. Seventy-three patients (53.3%) received adjuvant therapy (CT/CRT/RT: 48/13/12, respectively). A greater percentage of patients receiving adjuvant therapy had stage III-IVA (P = 0.010), high histologic grade (P = 0.035), and positive lymph nodes (P = 0.088). Multivariable analysis identified positive nodes (hazard ratio (HR), 3.60; P < 0.001), poor tumor differentiation (HR, 2.35, P = 0.048), and high baseline CA 19-9 level (HR, 1.97; P = 0.013) as predictors of decreased OS. The effect of adjuvant therapy varied according to the treatment modality. Adjuvant CRT was significantly associated with longer RFS (HR, 0.44; P = 0.036) but OS benefit was non-significant HR, 0.56; P = 0.245). In node-positive patients, CRT had a trend for longer OS (HR, 0.24; P = 0.097). In contrast, CT did not improve RFS (HR, 1.13; P = 0.617) or OS (HR, 1.70; P = 0.114). RT alone was associated shorter RFS (HR 3.08; P = 0.009) and OS (HR, 6.86, P < 0.001). Conclusions: Adjuvant CT and RT were not associated with a survival advantage in R0-resected intrahepatic and perihilar CC. CRT appears to be appropriate treatment after complete resection especially in lymph node-positive patients.