Background: Whether cytoreductive surgery (CRS) plus hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) is safe and worthwhile for elderly patients remains unclear. This meta-analysis of outcomes after CRS plus HIPEC for the elderly aimed to generate a higher level of evidence and precise indications for these patients.
Methods: A systematic literature search for studies reporting postoperative outcomes after CRS plus HIPEC for elderly patients was performed in the MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, ClinicalTrials.gov, Web of Knowledge Conference Proceedings Citation Index-Science, and Google Scholar databases. The included studies evaluated the overall 30-day postoperative morbidity, 90-day postoperative mortality, grade 3 or higher postoperative morbidity, rates of anastomotic leaks, reoperation and readmission, and length of hospital stay.
Results: The inclusion criteria were met by 13 retrospective studies involving 2544 patients. Considering only comparative studies, the 90-day postoperative mortality was significantly increased for elderly patients [odds ratio (OR), 0.49; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.27-0.88; I 2 = 79%]. The 30-day grade 3 or higher postoperative morbidity was increased in the patients 70 years of age or older (14.5%; 95% CI 8.1-24.4 vs. 32.3%; 95% CI 22.4-44.0%; p = 0.004; I 2 = 85%). The overall 30-day postoperative morbidity, rates of anastomotic leaks, reoperation and readmission, and length of hospital stay were not affected by age.
Conclusions: Treatment of the elderly with CRS plus HIPEC was associated with increased severe postoperative morbidity and mortality. However, these conclusions should be weighted given the existence of major biases in the included studies. Age alone probably would not be a formal contraindication, but frailty should be taken into account. Further prospective studies are needed.