Median pancreatectomy for tumors of the neck and body of the pancreas

Background: When enucleation is too risky because of possible damage of the main pancreatic duct, benign tumors located in the neck or body of the pancreas are usually removed by a left (spleno)-pancreatectomy or by a pancreatoduodenectomy. But standard pancreatic resection results in an important loss of normal pancreatic parenchyma and may cause impairment of exocrine and endocrine function. The aim of this study was to evaluate early and longterm results of median pancreatectomy, a limited resection of the midportion of the pancreas, in selected patients with benign or borderline tumors of the pancreas.