Defining a minimum number of examined lymph nodes improves the prognostic value of lymphadenectomy in pancreas ductal adenocarcinoma

BackgroundLymph node (LN) metastasis is associated with decreased survival following resection for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). In N0 disease, increasing total evaluated LN (ELN) correlates with improved outcomes suggesting patients may be understaged when LNs are undersampled. We aim to assess the optimal number of examined lymph nodes (ELN) following pancreatectomy.MethodsData from 1837 patients undergoing surgery were...