Limited Clinical Significance of Splenectomy and Splenic Hilar Lymph Node Dissection for Type 4 Gastric Cancer

Purpose: Type 4 gastric cancer (GC) has a very poor prognosis even after curative resection, and the survival benefit of splenectomy for splenic hilar lymph node (LN; #10) dissection in type 4 GC remains equivocal. This study aimed to clarify the clinical significance of splenectomy for #10 dissection in patients with type 4 GC. Materials and Methods: The data of a total of 56 patients with type 4 GC who underwent total gastrectomy with splenectomy were retrospectively analyzed. Postoperative morbidity, state of LN metastasis, survival outcomes, and therapeutic value index (TVI) of each LN station were evaluated. TVI was calculated by multiplying the incidence of LN metastasis at each nodal station and the 5-year overall survival (OS) of patients who had metastasis to each node. Results: Overall, the postoperative morbidity rate was 28.6%, and the incidence of #10 metastasis in the patients was 28.6%. The 5-year OS rate for all patients was 29.9%, and most patients developed peritoneal recurrence. Moreover, the 5-year OS rates with and without #10 metastasis were 6.7% and 39.1% (median survival time, 20.4 vs. 46.0 months; P=0.006). The TVI of #10 was as low as 1.92. Conclusions: The clinical significance of splenectomy in the dissection of #10 for type 4 GC is limited and splenectomy for splenic hilar dissection alone should be omitted.