Diseases of the esophagus : official journal of the International Society for Diseases of the Esophagus
-
We developed an en bloc lymphadenectomy method in the upper mediastinum with a single-port mediastinoscopic cervical approach. This study was designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of single-port mediastinoscope-assisted transhiatal esophagectomy for thoracic esophageal cancer. The perioperative outcomes of 60 patients with thoracic esophageal cancer who underwent this operation between March 2014 and June 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. ⋯ Postoperatively, pneumonia was observed in four patients (CD, Grade II, 2; Grade IIIb, 2), although vocal cord palsy was more frequent (ECCG, Type I, 12; Type III, 8). The median number of thoracic lymph nodes resected was 21, and the R0 resection rate was 95%. Single-port mediastinoscope-assisted transhiatal esophagectomy is feasible, in terms of perioperative outcomes, for a radical surgery for thoracic esophageal cancer, although its safety needs to be further demonstrated.
-
The aim of this prospective cohort study is to analyze the impact of supplemental home enteral nutrition (HEN) post-esophageal cancer surgery on nutritional parameters, quality of life (QL), and patient satisfaction. A systematic review reported that over 60% of patients lose >10% of both body weight and BMI by 6 months after esophagectomy. Enteral feeding (EF) is increasingly a modern standard postoperatively; however, the impact of extended HEN postdischarge has not been systematically studied. ⋯ Supplemental HEN for a minimum of one month postdischarge is associated with high compliance and patient satisfaction. Weight and BMI loss may still be substantial, however this may be less than published literature, in addition the impact on HR-QL may be attenuated. HEN has both subjective and objective rationale and merits further validation toward optimizing nutritional recovery and overall wellbeing.
-
Neoadjuvant treatment has become standard care for patients with resectable esophageal cancer. However, some patients cannot undergo surgery or curative resection because of disease progression during neoadjuvant treatment. The aim of this study is to identify the pretreatment characteristics of patients in whom neoadjuvant treatment failed. ⋯ In 141 patients with cT3 tumors, those in the noncurative group were more likely to have higher serum SCC antigen concentration (P = 0.021), location of the main tumor in the upper to the middle third of the esophagus (P = 0.071), intramural metastases (P < 0.001), advanced N category (P = 0.016), and bulky lymph node metastases (P = 0.060). Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified location of the main tumor in the upper to the middle third of the esophagus (P = 0.047), intramural metastases (P = 0.002), and nodal metastases (N1, P = 0.014; N2, P = 0.015, respectively) as independent predictors of treatment failure in patients with cT3 tumors. Neoadjuvant CF therapy alone may not be effective for patients with cT3 tumors accompanied by these risk factors, and the efficacy of alternative strategies, such as triplet chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy, should be evaluated.
-
Survival of patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma remains poor and individual differences in prognosis remain unexplained. This study investigated whether gene mutations can explain why patients with high-risk (pT3-4, pN+) esophageal adenocarcinoma survive past 5 years after esophagectomy. Six long-term survivors (LTS) (≥5 years survival without recurrence) and six short-term survivors (STS) (<2 years survival due to recurrence) who underwent resection without neoadjuvant therapy for high-risk esophageal adenocarcinoma were included. ⋯ Mutations across the LTS and STS were found in 10 of the 16 genes. The results warrant future studies to investigate a larger range of genes in a larger sample size. This may result in a panel with prognostic genes, to predict individual prognosis and to select effective individualized therapy for patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma.
-
Gastric pull-up is a common procedure to reconstruct the continuity of the upper digestive tract after esophageal resection. However, this technique sometimes causes postoperative anastomotic leakage or stricture, resulting from insufficient blood flow at the distal end. To overcome this problem, additional microvascular venous anastomoses were performed. ⋯ Patients who did not undergo additional venous superdrainage were significantly more likely to develop postsurgical leakage (P < 0.05, Chi-square test) and anastomotic stricture (P < 0.001, Chi-square test). Our study revealed that only additional venous anastomoses could reduce the incidence of postoperative anastomotic leakage and stricture. This procedure is of merit to perform after total esophagectomy and hypopharyngectomy with gastric tube reconstruction.