Novel en-bloc resection of locally advanced hilar cholangiocarcinoma: the Rex recess approach

Loco-regional recurrence after potentially curative resection remains a problem in hilar cholangiocarcinoma. Hilar dissection risks local spillage of tumor cells leading to suboptimal disease free survival. We have developed a new technique of radical resection for hilar cholangiocarcinoma based on the distinctive anatomy of the Rex recess of the liver, which has been assessed in two patients with locally advanced hilar cholangiocarcinoma. This technique included a right hepatectomy with en-bloc resection of the hepatoduodenal ligament and portal venous reconstruction to the left portal vein at the Rex recess. Both patients had R0 resection and have been disease-free for 26 and 38 months, respectively.