Chronological pattern of venous thromboembolism (VTE) occurrence impacts in survival of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC)

Background Limited data exist on the prognostic significance of the chronology of VTE in patients with PDAC. Methods Medical data and survival characteristics of patients treated for PDAC from 2019 to 2021 were retrospectively reviewed. Early VTE was defined as occurring within the three months of PDAC diagnosis. Results 197 patients were included, 54 (27.4%) developed a VTE. Early appearance of VTE was associated with worse prognosis: median overall survival (mOS) VTE 3 months 12.8 months (HR 0.78, 95% CI 0.39–1.54; p = 0.5) and mOS patients without VTE 11.4 months (95% CI 10.1–15.4). There was no significant association between the patient’s VTE risk according to the Khorana risk score (KRS) (chi2 test p -value = 0.9). Conclusion Early VTE is a prognostic factor in PDAC, which may identify a more aggressive subtype.