Systematic Reviews
Copyright ©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Oct 7, 2014; 20(37): 13599-13606
Published online Oct 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i37.13599
Laparoscopic liver resection for malignancy: A review of the literature
Eyas Alkhalili, Eren Berber
Eyas Alkhalili, Eren Berber, Department of General Surgery, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195, United States
Author contributions: All authors contributed to this work.
Correspondence to: Eren Berber, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery, Department of General Surgery, Cleveland Clinic, 9500 Euclid Avenue/F20, Cleveland, OH 44195, United States. berbere@ccf.org
Telephone: +1-121-64450555 Fax: +1-121-66360662
Received: November 27, 2013
Revised: May 13, 2014
Accepted: June 2, 2014
Published online: October 7, 2014
Abstract

AIM: To review the published literature about laparoscopic liver resection for malignancy.

METHODS: A PubMed search was performed for original published studies until June 2013 and original series containing at least 30 patients were reviewed.

RESULTS: All forms of hepatic resections have been described ranging from simple wedge resections to extended right or left hepatectomies. The usual approach is pure laparoscopic, but hand-assisted, as well as robotic approaches have been described. Most studies showed comparable results to open resection in terms of operative blood loss, postoperative morbidity and mortality. Many of them showed decreased postoperative pain, shorter hospital stays, and even lower costs. Oncological results including resection margin status and long-term survival were not inferior to open resection.

CONCLUSION: In the hands of experienced surgeons, laparoscopic liver resection for malignant lesions is safe and offers some short-term advantages over open resection. Oncologically, similar survival rates have been observed in patients treated with the laparoscopic approach when compared to their open resection counterparts.

Keywords: Laparoscopic liver resection, Laparoscopy, Laparoscopic liver surgery, Hepatectomy, Liver malignancy

Core tip: This paper is a review article of laparoscopic liver resection for malignancy. We review all large studies that investigated the techniques and outcomes of laparoscopic liver resection as well as those comparing laparoscopic to open resections.