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  • The Effect of Surgeon Exper...
    Barac Nekic, Anja; Knezevic, Nikola; Zibar Tomsic, Karin; Kraljevic, Ivana; Balasko, Annemarie; Skoric Polovina, Tanja; Solak, Mirsala; Dusek, Tina; Kastelan, Darko; Croatian Acc Study Group

    Journal of personalized medicine, 01/2022, Volume: 12, Issue: 1
    Journal Article

    Complete surgical removal of adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) represents the only chance of long-term cure. In this study, we compared the long-term outcomes of ACC patients depending on whether they had adrenal surgery performed in a high-volume (HVC) or in a low-volume (LVC) center. This retrospective study included 49 patients from the Croatian ACC Registry with the European Network for the Study of Adrenal Tumors (ENSAT) stage I-III ACC, of which 35 underwent surgery in a HVC whereas 14 of them were operated in one of the LVCs. Patients operated in the LVCs had a significantly higher rate of ACC recurrence (57.1% vs. 22.9%; = 0.02). Accordingly, RFS was significantly longer in patients operated on in HVC ( = 0.04). The difference in RFS remained significant after controlling for age, gender, tumor size, Ki-67 index, Weiss score, and type of surgery (HR 4.55; 95% CI 1.16-17.88; = 0.03). In addition, there is a tendency towards longer DSS in patients in the HVC group compared to those in the LVC group ( = 0.05). These results point to the centralization of adrenal surgery as a key prerequisite for improving the outcomes of ACC patients.