Published online Mar 27, 2014. doi: 10.5313/wja.v3.i1.1
Revised: August 12, 2013
Accepted: August 28, 2013
Published online: March 27, 2014
Pancreatic cancer continues to pose a major public health concern. The incidence of the disease is nearly equivalent to the death rate associated with the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. Thus, there exists a need for continued improvement in the diagnostic, therapeutic and palliative care of these patients. There have been significant advances made over the years in the areas of critical care, anesthesia, and surgical technique, which have led to improved mortality rates and survival after resection for pancreatic cancer. Resections are performed with the goals of negative margins and minimal blood loss and referral to high-volume centers and surgeons is encouraged. However, 5-year survival rate after curative resection still remains at less than 20%. Perioperative management of pancreatic and periampullary cancer poses a considerable challenge to the pancreatic surgeon, anesthesiologist and the intensive care team. Major morbidity is often secondary to pancreatic anastomotic leakage and fistula or infection. The anesthesiologist plays a crucial role in the perioperative management of such patients and in the pain control. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma has a high rate of neural invasion (80%-100%) and can be associated with moderate to severe pain. In the recent past, new information has emerged on many issues including preoperative biliary drainage, nutritional support, cardiovascular assessment, perioperative fluid therapy and hemodynamic optimization. Careful patient selection and appropriate preoperative evaluation can greatly contribute to a favorable outcome after major pancreatic resections.
Core tip: The aim of this editorial is to provide, from anaesthesiological point of view, practical recommendations for management of patients with pancreatic cancer.