Patterns of Lymph Node Recurrence in Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastases after Surgery: A Retrospective Longitudinal Study

Background: Hepatic resection is the standard treatment for resectable colorectal cancer liver metastases. There is evidence that lymphatics play a role in disease recurrence post-surgery. The aim of this retrospective study is to assess patterns of lymph node recurrence after liver resection. Methods: Patients who had liver resection for colorectal cancer metastasis between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2015 at 2 institutions in Melbourne, Australia were included. Data was collected from databases located at the 2 surgical centres.Results: Seventy-four patients were included in the study. Follow-up period was for a mean of 31.4 months. Lymph node recurrence was seen in 39.2% of patients during follow-up. Initial recurrence sites after hepatectomy was mainly in visceral-site only. Lymph node recurrences became more prominent during subsequent Recurrence Stages (RS) (RS1 – 22.4%, RS2 – 50.0%, RS3 – 50.0%, RS4 – 71.4%, RS5 – 66.7%, and RS6 – 0%). No predictive factor showed statistically significant relation to development of nodal recurrence. Conclusion: Lymph node recurrences after hepatic resection for liver metastases usually occur subsequent to a visceral-site only metastasis. There is no predictive factor as to which nodal group would be involved due to the complexity of liver lymphatic drainage.