Background

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a critical complication of malignant disease. Pancreatic cancer is one of the cancers most commonly associated VTE. In general, the VTE incidence rate of Asians is lower than that of Caucasians. In 2007, a Korean study reported that only four cases of VTE (5.3%) occurred in Seventy five patients with advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma. We evaluated VTE incidence in pancreatic cancer and characteristics of pancreatic cancer patients with VTE.

(We found out that VTE incidence rate among Asians was not lower, and the event of VTE was poor prognosis.)

Method

We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients with histopathologically proven pancreatic cancer from January 2006 to December 2012 at Soonchunhyang university hospital. We detected VTE through CT (chest CT, pulmonary embolism CT) and low extremity ultrasoundgraphy.

Results

Five hundred and fourteen patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma were enrolled. (M: F, 300:214, localized: locally advanced: metastatic=31:230:253, mean age: 66.7 years). Ninety six of 514 patients (18.6%, symptomatic: aymptomatic=38:58, PE: DVT: PE+DVT: visceral thrombosis=20:19:19:38) were diagnosed as VTE. At the time of DVT diagnosis, cancer status of 50 patients cancer was progression, and that of 15 was stable. Thirty one patients were diagnosed with the pancreatic cancer and VTE, at the same time. They all had metastatic lesions. Fifty VTE patients were treated with antithrombotic therapy. Ninety three of 96 patients died, and three of them have probability that cause of death was VTE. The others died of pancreatic cancer progression. From pancreatic cancer diagnosis to VTE diagnosis, the period is 1.7month. (95%CI 1.1-2.3 month). Median overall survival (OS) was not significantly different between pancreatic cancer with VTE or without VTE. OS was significantly longer VTE patients after pancreatic cancer diagnosis than VTE patients with pancreatic cancer at the same time (10.73m vs. 1.7, p=0.00).

Conclusion

The incidence of VTE (18.6%) in Soonchunhyang university hospital with pancreatic cancer was not lower than that in western groups.

Disclosures:

No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Topics:
pancreatic cancer, venous thromboembolism, cancer, deep vein thrombosis, pancreatic adenocarcinoma, cancer diagnosis, chest ct, fibrinolytic agents, pulmonary embolism, hospitals, university
© 2013 by The American Society of Hematology
2013
Sign in via your Institution