Background: Operative excision of abdominal extra-adrenal paragangliomas (EAPs) does not preclude the late development of local-regional recurrence. We describe the incidence, characteristics, and outcome of this rarely reported feature.
Methods: Retrospective analysis of local-regional recurrence that occurred during follow-up of 51 consecutive patients operated for a sporadic (n = 26) or hereditary (n = 25) EAP.
Results: Seven patients with a sporadic or syndromic EAP (n = 4: von Hippel-Lindau syndrome and SDHB, SDHC, and SDHD gene mutations) underwent reoperation for a local-regional recurrence after a median time of 46 months (interquartile range [IQR], 16-100). The Kaplan-Meier estimated incidence of local-regional recurrence (+/- standard error of the mean) reached 15% +/- 7% at 5 years and 23% +/- 9% after 10 years. Recurrent EAPs were all secreting and 38% provoked clinical symptoms. New lesions were smaller than the primary EAP (P = .01) and more often associated with lymph node metastases (43% vs 4%, P = .01). Operative excision seemed complete in 5 patients. Clinical remission was maintained in 4 patients after a median follow-up of 57 months (IQR, 22-102).
Conclusion: Local-regional recurrence of sporadic and syndromic EAPs is frequent and may be delayed beyond 10 years, requiring lifelong follow-up after the initial operation. When technically feasible, operative excision can lead to prolonged remission.