Resection of borderline resectable pancreatic cancer after neoadjuvant chemoradiation does not depend on improved radiographic appearance of tumor–vessel relationships

Objective Neoadjuvant therapy increases rates of margin-negative resection of borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (BL-PDAC). Criteria for BL-PDAC resection following neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiation therapy (NCRT) have not been clearly defined. Methods Fifty consecutive patients with BL-PDAC who received NCRT from 2007 to 2012 were identified. Computed tomography (CT) scans pre- and post-treatment were centrally reviewed. Results Twenty-nine patients (58 %) underwent resection following NCRT, while 21 (42 %) remained unresected. Patients selected for and successfully undergoing resection were more likely to have better performance status and absence of the following features on pre- and post-treatment CT: superior mesenteric vein/portal vein encasement, superior mesenteric artery involvement, tumor involvement of two or more vessels, and questionable/overt metastases (all p 0.05). The median overall survival was 22.9 months in resected versus 13.0 months in unresected patients ( p