The impact of the presence of the aberrant right hepatic artery in pancreatoduodenectomy for pancreatic head cancer

Abstract

An aberrant right hepatic artery usually originates from the superior mesenteric artery, it has an ascendant trajectory through the head of the pancreas or behind it and represents a technical challenge in pancreatic head tumors due to the fact that it needs to be carefully dissected and preserved in order to maintain an adequate blood supply for the right hemi-liver. Meanwhile, this dissection should be performed in an oncological manner in order to obtain the premises of a radical resection with negative margins. The aim of the current paper is to discuss about the influence of this anatomical arterial particularity and the possibility of obtaining a resection with curative intent in pancreatic head adenocarcinoma.