Prognostic factors of carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater after surgery

The purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic factors of carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater (CAV) after surgery. The clinicopathological factors related to the recurrence and prognosis of 162 CAV patients after surgical resection were retrospectively analyzed using univariate and multivariate methods. The in-hospital mortality rate was 4.32 % and the 5-year disease-free survival and overall survival of the 162 subjects were 55.1 and 51.7 %, respectively. Univariate analysis revealed that an advanced T stage (P = 0.002), lymph nodal metastasis (P = 0.002), poor differentiation (P = 0.006), tumor size (P = 0.033), tumor stage (P = 0.001), carbohydrate antigen (CA) 199 serum levels (P = 0.000), pancreatic invasion (P = 0.001), chemotherapy/radiation therapy (P = 0.006), and jaundice (P = 0.012) were factors that significantly affected the prognosis of CAV. Multivariate analysis showed that the pancreatic invasion (P = 0.009), lymph nodal metastasis (P = 0.009), and increased CA199 serum level (P = 0.001) were independent risk factors of recurrence. The pancreatic invasion, lymph nodal metastasis, and increased CA199 serum level are key prognostic factors of CAV after surgery.