AzTrials
AzTrials

Liver and Intrahepatic Bile Duct NeoplasmPhase 2NCT04982653

Short Stitch Versus Traditional Suture for the Prevention of Incisional Hernia After Open Hepatectomy

A Phase 2 study testing Quality-of-Life Assessment and Surgical Procedure in people with Liver and Intrahepatic Bile Duct Neoplasm and Metastatic Malignant Neoplasm in the Liver, run by M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at 1 site in United States.

Recruiting

Looking for participants now. Contact the study team or a site below to ask about taking part.

Sites and contacts
Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

This clinical trial compares two different kinds of surgical closing techniques, short stitch suture or traditional suture, in patients who are having liver tumor surgery. This study may help researchers learn if one technique can lower the chances of developing a hole in the wall of the abdomen (an abdominal hernia)… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
What is being tested?
Quality-of-Life Assessment and Surgical Procedure
Type of treatment
Surgery or procedure
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
140 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
4 Jan 2022to 2 Feb 2027
Phase
Phase 2
Are there results?
Not yet: the study is under way

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Patients undergoing hepatectomy for malignant diagnosis (primary or secondary) from 5/1/2021 through 11/1/2024 will be eligible for inclusion in this study
  • Elective surgery
  • Age >= 18
  • Planned midline laparotomy incision or inverted-L incision

Who cannot join

  • Pre-existing abdominal hernia
  • History of mesh placement at prior laparotomy
  • Pregnant women

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.

Timothy E Newhook, MD contact

713-792-6940

TNewhook@mdanderson.org

United States1 site, 1 recruiting
  • M D Anderson Cancer Center

    Houston, Texas, 77030

    Timothy E. Newhook, 713-792-6940, TNewhook@mdanderson.org

    Timothy E. Newhook

    Recruiting

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Incisional Hernia Prevention After Open Hepatectomy by Small Tissue Bite Fascial Closure: A Randomized Clinical Trial

This clinical trial compares two different kinds of surgical closing techniques, short stitch suture or traditional suture, in patients who are having liver tumor surgery. This study may help researchers learn if one technique can lower the chances of developing a hole in the wall of the abdomen (an abdominal hernia) at the incision site better than the other.

Read the detailed description

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE:

  1. To assess whether small bites abdominal wall closure reduces the risk of developing incisional hernia following liver surgery.

SECONDARY OBJECTIVES:

  1. To compare short-term perioperative outcomes between small bites and typical fascial closure technique.

II. To assess the hernia incidence rate of short stich versus (vs.) standard closure in subgroups of patients with inverted-L or midline incisions.

III. To assess the hernia incidence rate of Kawaguchi-Gayet hepatectomy complexity classifications I/II vs. III (hernia rate by extent of hepatectomy).

IV. To assess the hernia incidence rate of preoperative chemotherapy or no preoperative chemotherapy (hernia rate by exposure to preoperative chemotherapy).

  1. To assess impact of small bites abdominal wall closure on health care quality of life following liver surgery.

VI. To assess safety of small tissue bites fascial closure suture technique versus conventional fascial closure following hepatectomy.

OUTLINE: Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 arms.

ARM I (INTERVENTION): Patients undergo hepatectomy as planned using small bites fascial method for abdominal wall closure.

ARM II (CONTROL): Patients undergo hepatectomy as planned using conventional fascial method for abdominal wall closure.

After completion of study, patients are followed up at 1-4 weeks, and then at 3, 6, and 12 months.

Being tested
Quality-of-Life Assessment, Surgical Procedure
Medical subject headings
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Quality-of-Life AssessmentOther

    Also called Quality of Life Assessment

    Ancillary studies

  • Surgical ProcedureProcedure or surgery

    Also called Operation, Surgery, Surgical, Surgical Intervention

    Undergo hepatectomy using small bites fascial method for abdominal wall closure

  • Surgical ProcedureProcedure or surgery

    Also called Operation, Surgery, Surgical, Surgical Intervention

    Undergo hepatectomy using conventional fascial method for abdominal wall closure

Study groups in NCT04982653
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Arm I (hepatectomy using small bites fascial closure)ExperimentalPatients undergo hepatectomy as planned using small bites fascial method for abdominal wall closure.
Receives: Other: Quality-of-Life Assessment; Procedure: Surgical Procedure
Arm II (hepatectomy using conventional fascial method)Active comparatorPatients undergo hepatectomy as planned using conventional fascial method for abdominal wall closure.
Receives: Other: Quality-of-Life Assessment; Procedure: Surgical Procedure

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Radiographic incidence rate of incisional hernia

    Definition of incisional hernia will be based on the European Hernia Society: Any abdominal wall gap with or without a bulge in the area of a postoperative scar perceptible or palpable by clinical examination or imaging. Assessment of the primary outcome will occur at 3, 6, and 12 months with a computed tomography scan/magnetic resonance imaging. Scans will be read and assessed for incisional hernia by 3 independent assessors blinded to the allocation. A correlation coefficient will be determined for their assessments. The cumulative incidence rate of incisional hernia at 12 months will be estimated, along with the 95% confidence interval.

    Measured: Up to 12 months after surgery

Secondary outcomes (10)
  1. Surgical site infection

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  2. Surgical site occurrence

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  3. Surgical site occurrence requiring procedural intervention

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  4. Postoperative complications

    Post-operative infection, complication or pain will be assessed using Chi-squared test or Fisher's exact test.

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  5. Need for reoperation

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  6. Need for reoperation secondary to complication of abdominal closure

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  7. Length of hospital stay (postoperatively)

    Will be compared between the two arms using two-sample t-test or Wilcoxon rank sum test.

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

  8. Any readmission related to hernia repair

    Measured: Up to 30 days after surgery

  9. Health-related quality of life assessment

    Will use linear mixed effect modeling to assess the effects of time, arm as well as the interaction between arm and time.

    Measured: Up to 12 months after surgery

  10. Incidence of adverse events (AEs)

    Will be summarized using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage) by arm, AE type, severity and attribution.

    Measured: Up to 90 days after surgery

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted29 Jul 2021
  2. Study start4 Jan 2022
  3. Primary completion2 Feb 2027 (estimated)
  4. Study completion2 Feb 2027 (estimated)

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Prevention
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Participant, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
140 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT04982653
Sponsor's protocol ID
2021-0254
Other IDs
NCI-2021-04402, 2021-0254
Status last verified
May 2026
First submitted
18 Jun 2021
Last updated
26 May 2026
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 2 study testing Quality-of-Life Assessment and Surgical Procedure in people with Liver and Intrahepatic Bile Duct Neoplasm and Metastatic Malignant Neoplasm in the Liver, run by M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 3 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 26 May 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

Contact Timothy E Newhook, MD (713-792-6940, TNewhook@mdanderson.org), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Radiographic incidence rate of incisional hernia (time frame: Up to 12 months after surgery). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 26 May 2026.

Free account

Log in to keep searching

You’ve used your 3 free searches. AzTrials is free: log in or create a free account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in