Para-aortic Lymph Node Metastasis in Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

Lymph node metastases are a strong prognostic predictor for pancreatic cancer. Para-aortic lymph nodes (PALN) are the final nodes for periampullary cancers before the cancer cells enter the systemic lymphatic circulation. Some consider these nodes to be regional lymph nodes and dissect them as a part of a routine lymphadenectomy for pancreatic cancer. Others argue that metastases to these nodes represent systemic disease and recommend that radical surgery including extended lymphadenectomy should be abandoned. The aim of this study is to define the incidence and clinical consequences of PALN metastasis in patients submitted to a tentative curative resection for carcinoma of the head of the pancreas by systematically resecting paraaortic lymph nodes. Primary outcome 1\) To determine incidence of PALN metastasis in patients submitted to a tentative curative resection Secondary outcomes 1. To determine prognosis of patients with PALN metastasis after a curative resection 2. To determine incidence of metastasis in reginal lymph nodes in patients submitted to a tentative curative resection. 3. To determine prognosis of patients with metastasis in regional lymph nodes in patients submitted to a tentative curative resection. 4. To address the question of how to optimize the frozen section analyses of PALN as related to the final pathology report. 300 patients are planned to be included in the trial.