Technical notes on pure laparoscopic isolated caudate lobectomy for patient with liver cancer.

BACKGROUND: The advantages of laparoscopic liver resection become more obvious as evidence on its long-term outcome has emerged. Compared to open resection, there is no difference in term of overall survival. Many reports showed that the hospital stay was shorter and blood loss was less when laparoscopic hepatectomy was used. However, laparoscopic approach for caudate lobe resection remains a challenging procedure. The close proximity to inferior vena cava (IVC) and hepatic vein make this procedure extra difficult. This paper will demonstrate the use of pure laparoscopic approach for a patient with caudate lobe liver metastasis. Haemostasis by intracorporal suturing is safely performed when bleeding is encountered from the IVC.