2022 Volume 55 Issue 4 Pages 260-268
We report two cases of refractory ascites after surgery for pancreatic cancer that were treated with a Denver shunt®. Case 1 was a 74-year-old man who developed refractory chylous ascites 2 months after subtotal stomach-preserving total pancreatectomy. A Denver Shunt® was placed 6 months after the operation. Case 2 was a 71-year-old woman with a history of liver cirrhosis. Refractory ascites appeared 1 month after pylorus-preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy, and a Denver shunt® was placed 2 months after the operation. It was possible to resume and complete postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy in Case 1 and to start this chemotherapy in Case 2. Ascites was well controlled at 1 year and 10 months after placement of the Denver Shunt® in Case 1 and at 5 months in Case 2. The Denver Shunt® may have the potential to improve the prognosis of patients with non-malignant refractory ascites in the acute postoperative phase after surgery for pancreatic cancer by enabling early control of ascites and permitting introduction and continuation of adjuvant chemotherapy.
