Background: Parenchyma-sparing concept in liver surgery has received a new incitement with the introduction of laparoscopic techniques. Multiple concomitant liver resections are a major component in the parenchyma-sparing concept.
Materials and methods: In total, 689 patients underwent laparoscopic liver resection for colorectal liver metastases from August 1998 to 2017, and 171 patients were eligible for this study. Patients were divided into 3 groups: group I with single liver resection (36 patients); group II with multiple concomitant liver resections (104 patients); group III with liver resection(s) combined with concomitant liver ablation (31 patients). Perioperative outcomes and survival were compared between the groups I and II, whereas variables of group III were presented as complementary information, avoiding statistically exigent multiple comparisons.
Results: There were 6 conversions, 0, 3 (2.9%), and 2 (6.5%), respectively in the groups I, II, and III. Median operative time was 161, 186, and 224 minute in the groups I, II, and III, respectively. Median blood loss was 300 mL in groups I and II, and 200 mL in group III. It was a tendency to higher rate of postoperative complications in the group of single resections with morbidity rate of 31%, 19%, and 23% in group I, II, and III, respectively. Median postoperative stay was 3 days in all groups. Tumor-free margin resection was achieved in 92%, 86%, and 93%, respectively in the groups I, II, III. The median weight of resected specimen was significantly lower in group II (90 vs. 257 g; P<0.001). There were no significant differences in survival between the groups. The 5-year overall survival was 31%, 42%, and 43% for groups I, II, and III, respectively.
Conclusions: Laparoscopic multiple concomitant parenchyma-sparing liver resections provide surgical and oncologic outcomes comparable with single greater resections for multiple lesions. This approach could be recommended for a wide application in specialized hepatopancreatobiliary centers.