Comprehensive Analysis of Chyle Leak in Resected Pancreatic Head Cancer: Impact on Clinical, Oncologic, and Nutritional Outcomes.

Background: Chyle leak (CL) is a relevant complication of pancreatic surgery, but its incidence, risk factors, clinical and oncologic impacts, and nutritional relevance remain inconsistent and limited.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy for pancreatic head cancer from 2007 to 2023 at a single institution. The clinical impact of CL was evaluated by prolonged hospital stays and immune-nutritional status, assessed using the Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score at discharge. Oncologic impact included the administration of adjuvant chemotherapy, the surgery-to-chemotherapy interval, overall survival (OS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS). Predictors of CL were identified through multivariate analyses.

Results: CL occurred in 70 patients (13.8%) and was significantly associated with prolonged hospital stay (OR: 1.947, p = 0.045) and poor CONUT score at discharge (> 6; OR: 1.820, p = 0.036). CL did not significantly impact oncologic outcomes, including adjuvant chemotherapy (p = 0.732), surgery-to-chemotherapy interval (p = 0.235), 5-year OS (p = 0.978), or 5-year RFS (p = 0.919). Independent predictors of CL included hypertension, lymph node metastasis, delayed gastric emptying, minimally invasive surgery (MIS), and operative time.

Conclusions: CL is associated with prolonged hospital stay and poor nutritional status at discharge, but shows no significant impact on long-term oncologic outcomes.