Fifty consecutive patients who underwent 52 formal hepatic resections (excluding isolated wedge resections) for metastatic colorectal cancer were analyzed to determine whether DNA content was of prognostic significance. The Dukes' stages of the colorectal primaries were: A (10%), B (20%), C (40%), D (28%), and unknown in 2%. Four patients whose liver metastases were discovered at the time of resection of the primary bowel cancer underwent concomitant liver resection, and the remaining patients underwent delayed resections. The hepatic resections performed were right lobectomy (50%), extended right lobectomy (19%), left lobectomy (13%), left lateral segmentectomy (6%), left lobectomy and right wedge (6%), extended left lobectomy (4%), and right lobectomy and left wedge (2%). The overall morbidity rate was 29%. The in-hospital mortality rate was 9%. As of November 1991, 36 patients have recurred. The 5-year actuarial survival was 28%. Flow cytometry could be performed on 37 archival specimens, 15 of which were found to be diploid whereas 22 were aneuploid. All metastases from Dukes A colorectal primaries demonstrated a diploid DNA content. In addition, there was no difference in actuarial survival between diploid and aneuploid tumors. These data suggest that in selected patients, formal hepatic resection of colorectal liver metastases can be performed with an acceptable morbidity rate, mortality rate, and survival, but ploidy of the resected tumor is not of prognostic significance.
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