Preoperative chemoradio in all the guidelines.

Preoperative chemoradio in all the guidelines.

Preoperative chemoradio in all the guidelines.

65-year-old man who consults for dysphagia to solids since two months ago. Esophagoscopy shows a tumor 30 cm from the dental arch, partially stenosing, with pathological anatomy of squamous cell carcinoma. Endoscopic ultrasound and PET-CT scan were requested where no pathological lymphadenopathies were observed. Which of the following options would be the most correct?

Esophagectomy according to the Ivor-Lewis technique.

Chemotherapy plus preoperative radiotherapy.

The controversy of esophageal carcinosarcoma: A case report and brief review of literature.

Esophageal carcinosarcoma (ECS) is defined as a relatively rare malignant neoplasm with both epithelial carcinomatous and sarcomatous components. Besides, there were so many various controversies in ECS. This article describes a case of ECS that was effectively treated with radical esophagectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy. Also, we discuss the presentation, differential diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of ECS. A 58-year-old man presented with a history of progressive dysphagia and precordial pain after swallowing for 1 month. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) revealed a large polypoid neoplasm that occupied the esophageal lumen 30 to 34 cm from the incisors. On the characteristic morphology, clinical symptom and biopsy findings, the ECS was the primary considerated. Computed tomography (CT) examination demonstrated no radiological evidence of metastatic disease. The patient underwent an Ivor Lewis esophagectomy, coupled with adequate lymph node dissection (2-field lymphadenectomy). ECS was confirmed by pathology report of postoperative. Then, the patient underwent adjuvant chemotherapy with docetaxel, oxaliplatin, and capecitabine. The patient remained alive without tumor recurrence at 24 months after multidisciplinary therapy. It is generally treated by surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy according to the protocols used for other esophageal cancers (EC). However, there is no recommended clinical treatment for ECS because of the rarity of the disease. Esophagectomy with extended lymphadenectomy followed by adjuvant chemotherapy with docetaxel, oxaliplatin, and capecitabine may be recommended treatment for ECS. Chemotherapy regimen with docetaxel, oxaliplatin, and capecitabine may be a suitable adjuvant therapy for ECS.

The current evidence in support of multimodal treatment of locally advanced, potentially resectable esophageal cancer.

Treatment of locally advanced resectable esophageal cancer is challenging. In the past three decades surgical treatment has become safer, chemotherapy more powerful and radiation techniques more precise. Today's stage-dependent treatment relies on modern diagnostic tools such as multidetector helical CT, high-frequency endoscopic ultrasound, PET, image fusion techniques and MRI. Specialists cooperate on multidisciplinary tumor boards that follow transparent decision trees based on the newest evidence. Results of recent randomized controlled trials are examined with emphasis on their reliability and comparability. Patients with esophagogastric cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy, perioperative chemotherapy and neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy plus esophagectomy had a higher R-0 resection rate, fewer involved lymph nodes and better overall survival than with esophagectomy alone. While perioperative morbidity and mortality were not remarkably enhanced by neoadjuvant chemotherapy, several trials showed an increase of mortality after neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy. Adenocarcinoma seems to respond better to chemotherapy than squamous cell cancer, and squamous cell cancer seems to respond better to radiochemotherapy than adenocarcinoma. On the basis of the results of randomized trials, preoperative treatment of esophageal cancer shows a survival benefit and should be recommended as the standard treatment strategy in advanced esophageal cancer. While preoperative radiochemotherapy is the standard for advanced squamous cell cancer, both chemotherapy and radiochemotherapy may be adopted for neoadjuvant/perioperative treatment of adenocarcinoma depending on the patient's general condition. Markers to predict response are urgently needed since only responders benefit from multimodal treatment and nonresponders suffer potential harm when surgery is delayed.

Effects of neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy on pathological staging and prognosis for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

The role of neoadjuvant therapy in the treatment of locally advanced esophageal carcinoma still remains controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy on pathological staging and prognosis in the patients with locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Between January 1991 and December 2000, 473 patients with advanced esophageal carcinoma diagnosed by endoscopic biopsy underwent surgical resection in our center. With informed consent, they were randomized into four groups: neoadjuvant chemotherapy, neoadjuvant radiotherapy, neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy, and surgery alone (control group). The preoperative computed tomography staging criteria were the following: Stage I, the tumor limited to the esophageal lumen or the thickness of the esophageal wall varied between 3-5 mm; Stage II, the thickness exceeds 5 mm but no invasion to the mediastinum or distant metastasis; Stage III, the tumor invades adjacent mediastinal structure; and Stage IV, there is distant metastasis. The tumor resection rate, pathological stage, treatment-related complication, and survival among groups were compared. The radical resection rate for the patients in radiotherapy and radiochemotherapy groups was increased in comparison with the control group (P < 0.05). Their pathological stage after esophagectomy was regressed significantly than that of the control group (50.85%, 55.08% vs. 0%, P < 0.05). The adjuvant chemotherapy group did show significant improvement on resection rate and pathological staging compared with the control group. The treatment-related complication in the three neoadjuvant groups had no significant difference from that of the control group (P > 0.05). The 3-year survival rate of radiotherapy and radiochemotherapy groups were significantly higher than that of the control group (69.49%, 73.73% vs. 53.38%, P < 0.05). The 5-year survival rate of radiochemotherapy group was higher than that of the radiotherapy group although did not show a statistical difference (P > 0.05). Rational application of neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy seems to provide a modest benefit in radical resection and survival in patients with locally advanced esophageal carcinoma.

[A Case of Early Recurrence after Esophagectomy for Cancer Following Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Resulting in a Complete Response of the Primary Lesion].

A 78-year-old man presented with a chief complaint of dysphagia. He was diagnosed with an esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and referred to our hospital. A type 3 tumor was identified in the lower thoracic esophagus on endoscopy. A CT scan revealed lymph node metastases at the No. 3 station. The clinical stage of the tumor was T3N1M0, Stage III. The patient was treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy consisting of2 courses of5 -FU and nedaplatin. He had a partial response and underwent a radical esophagectomy. Histopathological examination revealed a complete response of the primary lesion and viable cancer cells in only one lymph node at the No. 3 station. No adjuvant chemotherapy was administered. Three months after the operation, recurrences in the upper abdominal multiple para-aortic lymph nodes were detected. Although he was treated with chemotherapy, he died 7 months after the operation. Even after a complete response of the primary lesion was achieved using neoadjuvant chemotherapy, esophageal cancer with lymph node metastasis has the potential for an early recurrence. Therefore, we should consider adjuvant therapy in such cases.

Successful multidisciplinary treatment including repeated metastasectomy for recurrent squamous cell esophageal carcinoma: a case report.

Recurrences after radical esophagectomy are common. The prognosis for recurrent esophageal cancer is generally poor. Recurrences usually occur between 1 and 3 years of surgery, with the duration of median survival after recurrence ranging from 5 to 10 months. The number of sites and involved organs vary among patients. Consequently, a standard therapeutic strategy has not been established, and the role of surgery in the management of recurrence is unclear. A 67-year-old man presented with dysphagia 6 months previously and was diagnosed with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in the upper thoracic region (T2M0M0, stage IB), for which he underwent thoracoscopy-assisted esophagectomy and lymphadenectomy. Adjuvant chemotherapy was not prescribed. Three years after the operation, he developed a solitary metastasis in the left lung, requiring segmentectomy followed by chemotherapy with combined cisplatin (CDDP) and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). The following year, a metastatic lesion was recognized in the right lung, invading the chest wall, for which he underwent partial lobectomy with local chest wall resection. Multiple mediastinal and abdominal lymph node (LN) metastases were detected in the right lung a year later, which necessitated chemoradiation to a dose of 50.4 Gy with concomitant CDDP and 5-FU. Post-treatment computed tomography (CT) showed a good response. Positron emission tomography (PET)-CT revealed a reduction in the metastatic LNs with no fluoro-deoxy-glucose (FDG) uptake. The following year, metastases were detected in the left cervical LNs. Owing to the limited extent of metastases, resection was followed by chemoradiation to a dose of 50 Gy with CDDP and 5-FU. The following year, metastases were detected in the mediastinal LNs; chemotherapy was administered with nedaplatin and docetaxel. The follow-up CT and PET-CT demonstrated complete disappearance of the tumor, and the patient is currently surviving without recurrence for 11 years from the first curative operation. This case demonstrates that aggressive multidisciplinary treatment including surgery and radiation to achieve local control could be a meaningful treatment strategy in cases with limited and slowly occurring recurrences.

[Esophageal cancer].

Esophageal cancer is a pathology with a remarkable geographical variety, considered to be a disease of the poor. The common incidence reported in western countries of 3 per 100,000 per year, contrasts with 140 per 100,000 reported in Central Asia in an area that is known as the "esophageal cancer belt". Among a wide spectrum of potential etiologic agents, the use of alcohol and tobacco remain the most frequently reported. The most common pathologic type is squamous cell carcinoma, although is important to consider that in the past decades, a shift to adenocarcinoma has been consistently observed. This phenomenon might have an explanation in the inclusion of tumors of the cardia and the importance of metaplasic Barret's epithelium and gastroesophageal reflux. As it happens in the majority of gastrointestinal tumors, diagnosis is often done late in esophageal cancer. The most common presenting symptoms of esophageal cancer are dysphagia and weight loss. Others are, odynophagia, upper GI bleeding, hoarseness and respiratory symptoms. In patients with advanced disease, diagnostic studies are confirmatory in nature. The combined use of contrast esophagogram and endoscopy yield to a diagnostic accuracy above 95%. These studies have to be complimentary. Computed tomography is the best modality for staging tumors of the esophagus. Although its accuracy varies from one study to another, demonstration of disease beyond the esophagus precludes surgical treatment. Endoluminal ultrasound has assumed an important role as part of the staging studies, considered by some authors superior to CT scanning. Its use is not considered rutinary because of the difficulty on passing the instrument through an obstructive lesion, and to the fact that this technology is not widely available. In the majority of patients, surgical treatment is considered to be palliative, due to the presence of advanced disease at the time of diagnosis. From the multiple surgical options available, transhiatal esophagectomy without thoracotomy is one of the more widely accepted techniques. Controversy persists regarding the optimal surgical approach to the disease. It is well accepted that prognosis depends more in the biology of the tumor and the stage of the disease rather than the surgical procedure. Overall five year survival after esophageal resection is 20%, regardless of the surgical option. Other alternatives are standard transthoracic esophagectomy, the thoraco-abdominal approach and the triple approach with extensive lymphadenectomy of cervical, mediastinal and abdominal areas. These latter procedures carry more morbidity and mortality rates. It is probably the multimodality approach with pre or postoperative chemotherapy and radiotherapy what can impact in further improvement of the poor survival rates for this disease. This combined approach is currently being investigated under control prospective randomized trials.

Curative treatment of oesophageal carcinoma: current options and future developments.

Since the 1980s major advances in surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy have established multimodal approaches as curative treatment options for oesophageal cancer. In addition the introduction of functional imaging modalities such as PET-CT created new opportunities for a more adequate patient selection and therapy response assessment.The majority of oesophageal carcinomas are represented by two histologies: squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. In recent years an epidemiological shift towards the latter was observed. From a surgical point of view, adenocarcinomas, which are usually located in the distal third of the oesophagus, may be treated with a transhiatal resection, whereas squamous cell carcinomas, which are typically found in the middle and the upper third, require a transthoracic approach. Since overall survival after surgery alone is poor, multimodality approaches have been developed. At least for patients with locally advanced tumors, surgery alone can no longer be advocated as routine treatment. Nowadays, scientific interest is focused on tumor response to induction radiochemotherapy. A neoadjuvant approach includes the early and accurate assessment of clinical response, optimally performed by repeated PET-CT imaging and endoscopic ultrasound, which may permit early adaption of the therapeutic concept. Patients with SCC that show clinical response by PET CT are considered to have a better prognosis, regardless of whether surgery will be performed or not. In non-responding patients salvage surgery improves survival, especially if complete resection is achieved.

Predictive Value of Endoscopic Observations and Biopsy After Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy in Assessing the Pathologic Complete Response of Patients With Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

No standard method has been defined to evaluate the therapeutic response of esophageal cancer to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT). This study aimed to determine the predictive value of endoscopic evaluation and biopsy after CRT in predicting the complete pathological response to neoadjuvant CRT in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). This prospective, descriptive study was conducted on patients with stage II and III esophageal SCC who could undergo esophagectomy. Patients underwent neoadjuvant CRT. Four to six weeks after the end of treatment, re-endoscopy was performed and a biopsy was taken in the presence of a tumor lesion. In the absence of a tumor lesion, the marked site of the esophagus was removed as a blind biopsy. Gastrologist observations during endoscopy and the result of the pathological examination of an endoscopic biopsy were recorded. The patient underwent esophagectomy. The pathology obtained from endoscopic biopsy was compared with the pathology response obtained from esophagectomy. Sixty-nine patients were included in the study, of which 32 underwent esophagectomy. In an endoscopic examination after CRT, 28 patients had macroscopic tumor remnants and 4 patients did not. Pathological examination of the samples obtained from endoscopy showed no tumor remnants in 10 patients (31.3%), and in 22 patients (68.7%), living tumor remnants were seen in the biopsy specimen. Pathologic evaluation of the samples obtained by surgical resection showed that in 13 patients, there were no viable carcinomas in the esophagus or lymph nodes removed, and the rate of pathologic complete response was 40.6. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive, and negative predictive values of endoscopic observations were 94.7, 23, 64.2, and 75%, respectively. Preoperative biopsy sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) were 68.4, 30.7, 59, and 40%, respectively. Considering the negative and positive predictive values of endoscopic observations and biopsy after neoadjuvant CRT, it seems that these two methods alone are not suitable for assessing the pathologic complete response after neoadjuvant treatment.

Symptom Management for Patients With Esophageal Cancer After Esophagectomy.

<bCASE STUDY</b KD is a 67-year-old man with a medical history of hypertension, asthma, and a 20-pack/year smoking history who developed progressive dysphagia 8 months ago. Upon consultation with his primary care provider, he underwent an esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) for evaluation. A friable mass was visualized at the gastroesophageal junction, and biopsies confirmed adenocarcinoma of the esophagus. KD completed a staging evaluation with positron-emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), which did not reveal distant metastatic disease. He also had an endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), which showed the tumor invading the muscularis propria and did not identify any enlarged regional lymph nodes (stage T3N0 disease). KD was referred to a medical oncologist and a radiation oncologist; he underwent concurrent chemoradiation therapy with docetaxel and fluorouracil and radiation therapy (50.4 Gy). KD was referred to thoracic surgery following restaging with PET/CT and EGD; there was no evidence of distant metastatic disease, and pathology findings revealed residual adenocarcinoma in one of the four esophageal biopsies. KD underwent Ivor Lewis esophagectomy and had a jejunostomy tube placed for nutritional requirements for 10 weeks as he adjusted to oral nutrition. Surgical pathology findings revealed residual adenocarcinoma with treatment effect; no malignancy was detected in the sampled regional lymph nodes. Four months later, KD presents with complaints of frequent postprandial diarrhea and reflux. He says he has been trying to lie down after meals due to palpitations and flushing. He is anxious about these symptoms and fearful about his long-term prognosis adjusting to the side effects of esophagectomy and would like to discuss lifestyle modifications.

[Current status of initial staging and posttreatment response evaluation in esophageal carcinoma].

There has been remarkable progress in diagnostic modalities in recent years. The development of endoscopic instruments and introduction of fluoro deoxy glucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) and sentinel node (SN) diagnosis markedly improved diagnostic quality. The requirement for individualized treatment is increasing with the progress in less-invasive treatment, and therefore it is necessary to select the optimal treatment individually on the basis of accurate tumor staging. In diagnosis of the T category, zoom endoscopy and autofluorescence imaging/narrow band imaging technology improved the diagnostic accuracy of T1 stage. T2 or higher tumors are diagnosed with endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) and multidetector computed tomography (CT). In diagnosis of the N category, FDG-PET was expected to be useful. However, it often gave false-negative lymph node (LN) results, and was revealed to have low sensitivity in contrast to high specificity. It is important to detect swollen LNs using CT and then to assess qualitatively the presence or absence of metastasis with EUS and FDG-PET. SN diagnosis using radioisotopes as tracers was introduced as preliminary research for subsequent less-invasive surgery. In diagnosis of the M category, FDG-PET is currently the most important to obtain additional information missed on CT, because FDG-PET can assess the whole body. For response evaluation to neoadjuvant treatment, FDG-PET is extremely useful. It can predict histologic response and postoperative survival accurately and allow diagnosis of distant metastases in the entire body simultaneously. All information needed for a decision on surgical indications can be acquired noninvasively, and therefore FDG-PET may be the key modality in multimodality treatment.

Radiation-induced hepatitis masquerading as metastatic disease: the importance of correlating diagnostic imaging with treatment planning.

We are presenting a 63-year-old Caucasian male who complained of 2 months of progressive dysphagia. Upper endoscopy discovered a mass in the distal esophagus near the gastroesophageal junction. Biopsy was consistent with adenocarcinoma. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) showed extension beyond the muscularis propria, with an enlarged paraesophageal lymph node (T3N1). Initial positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) showed hypermetabolic portocaval lymphadenopathy presumed to be metastatic, but otherwise without distant disease extension. Neoadjuvant treatment included induction FOLFOX followed by 5,600 cGy over 28 fractions in combination with 5-FU and oxaliplatin. Approximately 3.5 weeks after completion, a repeat PET/CT revealed reduced uptake in both the primary esophageal mass and regional lymph nodes. Of note there were several new mass-like foci of hypermetabolism in the liver, specifically the left lobe, concerning for metastatic disease. Image-guided biopsy did not show any identifiable lesions, but sampling was performed based on anatomical landmarks. Pathology revealed benign parenchyma with minimal inflammation and mild reactive regeneration. In light of this, the patient proceeded to undergo definitive resection via robotic Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy with only 1 positive lymph node. Given pleural involvement by the tumor, staging was revised to pT4aN1 with final histology characterized as adenosquamous carcinoma. Postoperative course was fairly uneventful, with a mild exacerbation of his chronic heart failure. The patient was discharged on post-operative day 7, with his feeding tube removed at his 2-week post-operative clinic visit. This scenario is of particular educational value from the standpoint that when the post-treatment PET/CT images are registered to the radiotherapy treatment planning CT and dose, the areas of abnormal uptake in the liver fall within the higher dose regions. Given this and the liver biopsy findings, caution should be exercised before declaring progressive disease following radiotherapy without first reviewing the treatment plan.

[Current status of esophageal neoplasms. I].

In Europe, carcinoma of the esophagus is a relatively rare disease with an annual mortality rate of 4-7 deaths per 105 inhabitants. Institution of appropriate therapy for esophageal carcinoma depends mainly on accurate diagnosis and staging. Computed tomography displays the anatomy of the esophagus and mediastinum with a high degree of accuracy and is a good method of assessing extra-esophageal spread of carcinoma. Preoperative nutritional support may reduce operative mortality and morbidity in high-risk patients. Today there is still no alternative to resection of the carcinoma. Esophagogastrectomy with (cervical) esophagogastrostomy with or without thoracotomy is the treatment of choice for patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus. Prognosis is still poor, with a 5-year survival rate of less than 20%. If resection is technically impossible, an endoesophageal tube can be inserted or a bypass procedure carried out to increase the quality of life with near normal ability to swallow. Radiotherapy can be used when surgery primarily is not applicable for medical reasons or is refused. Preoperative radiotherapy does not produce statistically significant short- or long-term benefit in the management of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Chemotherapy or combination chemotherapy have so far been insufficiently tested and cannot be recommended today for routine use. A combined modality approach is promising but needs further evaluation.

[Multidisciplinary treatment of thoracic esophagus carcinoma based on preoperative staging].

Recently, with developments in CT scanning and endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), in addition to conventional ultrasound (US), significant advances have been made in the evaluation of preoperative staging. Evaluation of the presence of A3 invasion is made on the basis of X-ray, CT and EUS findings. In superficial cases of ep, mm or sm, EUS with particular reference to the X-ray and endoscopic appearance is very effective, and in our department the diagnostic accuracy in cases of mucosal lesions is 88%, while it is 84% in sm cases. Diagnosis of metastasis to cervical and abdominal lymph nodes is performed by US, while diagnosis of mediastinal lymph node metastasis is performed by EUS. The accuracy of US for detecting cervical and abdominal lymph node metastases, including those approximately 0.5 cm in size, is 95%, while that of EUS in the diagnosis of metastasis to mediastinal nodes is 89%. The 5-year survival of patients with lymph node metastasis significantly affects prognosis. Based on this, since 1985, extended dissection in the cervical, thoracic and abdominal regions has been carried out. Since 1985, some resected cases have been treated with pre- or postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy regimens, centered primarily on CDDP (majority of cases with CDDP + VDS). A significant improvement has been obtained in the 1-2-year survival of C greater than O resected cases treated since 1985, compared with cases in 1980-1984. This improvement is thought to be due to dissection of lymph nodes in the three major regions, based on more accurate preoperative evaluation and the introduction of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy.

Can common hepatic artery lymph node dissection be safely omitted in surgery for clinical T1N0 thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma?

Common hepatic artery lymph node dissection is regarded as a standard procedure in esophageal cancer surgery because of aggressive lymphatic dissemination of esophageal cancer. However, lymph node dissection can prolong operation time and may be associated with complications such as chylous ascites. Here, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of common hepatic artery lymph node dissection in clinical T1N0 thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Between 1996 and 2009, 1390 patients underwent surgery for esophageal cancer in our institution, and 209 were found to have clinical T1N0 disease. Exclusion criteria were nonsquamous carcinoma, double primary cancer, definite distant metastasis, administration of neoadjuvant treatment, and incomplete abdominal lymph node dissection. We retrospectively analyzed medical records, operative and pathologic data, and follow-up information. Forty-two patients were excluded from the study. Among the 167 enrolled patients, preoperative endoscopic ultrasound evaluation was performed in 160 patients. Fifty-two patients had distal esophageal or esophagogastric junction tumor. Surgery included 2 cases of tri-incisional esophagectomy, 17 cases of transhiatal esophagectomy, and 148 cases of two-field esophagectomy (Ivor Lewis operation). Common hepatic artery lymph node dissection was performed in all cases, and none of the patients had metastasis. Mean follow-up period was 35.4 ± 28.7 months. In-hospital mortality was one, and 5-year survival rate was 80.6%. Among the 15 patients with recurrence, there were two distant metastases and five distant and local recurrences but no intra-abdominal recurrence with common hepatic artery lymph node. Common hepatic artery lymph node dissection may be safely omitted in surgery for clinical T1N0 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma when preoperative evaluations including chest computed tomography, positron emission tomography and computed tomography, and esophagogastroduodenoscopy or endoscopic ultrasound are performed.

Concurrent radiation therapy and chemotherapy followed by esophagectomy for localized esophageal carcinoma.

A prospective study was performed to determine the outcome of patients with esophageal cancer who received preoperative radiation therapy and chemotherapy followed by esophagectomy, and to determine the role of preresection esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) in predicting the patients in whom surgery could possibly be omitted, and the impact of surgery on survival. Thirty-five patients with localized carcinoma of the esophagus received concurrent external-beam radiotherapy and chemotherapy followed by esophagectomy. Patients received 45 Gy in 25 fractions. Chemotherapy consisted of continuous infusion fluorouracil (5-FU; 1,000 mg/m2/d) on days 1 through 4 and 29 through 32 and cisplatin (100 mg/m2) on day 1. Patients underwent an Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy 18 to 33 days after completion of radiotherapy. Eighty percent of the patients had squamous cell carcinoma and 20% had adenocarcinoma. In addition, 51% had a pathologic complete response (CR). Twenty-two of the 35 underwent a preresection EGD before resection. Seventeen of the 22 (77%) had negative pathology from the preresection EGD, but seven of the 17 (41%) had residual tumor at surgery. The median survival and disease-free survival rates for all patients were 25.8 months and 32.8 months, respectively. Eighteen patients (51%) had no tumor at resection. The median survival for these patients was 36.8 months; the median disease-free survival time has not been reached. The median survival and disease-free survival rate for the patients with residual tumor in the surgical specimen were 12.9 months and 10.8 months, respectively. Preresection EGD is not reliable for determining the presence of residual disease or the patients in whom surgery could be omitted. Twenty-five percent of the patients with residual tumor in the resected surgical specimen were long-term survivors; this suggests a benefit from esophagectomy after concurrent radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

[Neoadjuvant therapy for resectable esophageal cancer].

Surgical excision remains the only therapeutic approach with curative potential in patients with localized esophageal cancer. Due to the presence of lymph node metastases upon diagnosis in a large percentage of patients with locally advanced tumors and/or the presence of considerable co-morbidity, only a limited number of patients are amenable to surgery. These facts have prompted us to evaluate approaches including perioperative therapy modalities. By means of a computer-supported search (MEDLINE, ASCO Proceedings) as well as a manual literature search, randomized clinical trials and meta-analyses evaluating preoperative therapy plus surgery in patients with resectable esophageal cancer were identified. Twenty-three randomized clinical studies and five meta-analyses were identified. Interpretation--especially of the older studies--however, is hampered by the lack of a stringent application of modern examination techniques allowing for exact specification of tumor stage (resectable/locally advanced) as well as the inclusion of patients with different histological entities (squamous cell/adenocarcinoma), different surgical techniques and the low number of patients. There were no significant differences for the following perioperative therapy modalities regarding tumor-related mortality: preoperative radiotherapy versus postoperative radiotherapy, preoperative and postoperative radiotherapy versus postoperative radiotherapy (higher mortality in preoperative and postoperative radiotherapy arm), preoperative radiotherapy versus surgery, preoperative chemotherapy versus surgery, preoperative and postoperative chemotherapy versus surgery. In terms of 3-year mortality, statistically significant differences could be found for the following therapy modalities: preoperative radiochemotherapy versus surgery (preoperative therapy superior), preoperative chemotherapy versus preoperative radiotherapy (preoperative radiotherapy superior). Judging from these data, no clear recommendation for a standard multimodality approach outside clinical studies can be given for patients with resectable esophageal cancer. Neoadjuvant therapy, therefore, can only be recommended in centers with a maximum surgical expertise and in the context of multidisciplinary study protocols.

Comparison of oncological outcomes after laparoscopic transhiatal and open esophagectomy for T1 esophageal adenocarcinoma.

This study compared pathological characteristics and patterns of disease recurrence for patients with pT1 esophageal adenocarcinoma treated with either laparoscopic transhiatal esophagectomy or open esophagectomy. From January 2000-December 2006, 44 patients had pT1 esophageal adenocarcinoma after esophagectomy. No patients had neoadjuvant treatment. Twenty-four patients had an Ivor Lewis operation, 4 had an open transhiatal and 16 had a laparoscopic transhiatal operation. There were 37 men. The median age was 64 years (range 35-80 years). Median lymph node yield was 19 (10-51) after an Ivor Lewis operation, 16 (3-28) after an open transhiatal operation and 15 (4-41) after a laparoscopic transhiatal operation. There were two in-hospital deaths (5%), both following open Ivor Lewis operation. All patients in the laparoscopic group had N0 disease; none received adjuvant treatment. Two patients (7%) in the open group had N1 disease, of whom one patient received adjuvant chemotherapy. Eleven patients had submucosal invasion. Alive patients had median follow-up of 36 months (range 5-87 months). One patient in the laparoscopic group had recurrence at 22 months. This patient had poorly differentiated N0 disease which was limited to the mucosa and died at 24 months. Two patients in the open group developed recurrence, at 6 months (N0 disease with submucosal invasion) and 8 months (N1 disease with submucosal invasion) and died at 7 and 14 months, respectively. Both patients had poorly differentiated tumours. The second patient with N1 disease is alive and well at 14 months. Estimated survival (Kaplan-Meier) at 3 years was 93%. As compared with open transthoracic esophagectomy, there is no oncological detriment in the treatment of pT1 esophageal adenocarcinoma by laparoscopic transhiatal esophagectomy. The incidence of recurrence is small (7%) but can occur even in patients with tumour limited to the mucosa or N0 disease.

Accuracy of preoperative diagnosis of lymph node metastasis for thoracic esophageal cancer patients from JCOG9907 trial.

Accurate clinical evaluation of lymph nodes is crucial for selection of the optimum treatment strategy for individual esophageal cancer patients. This study investigated the accuracy of preoperative clinical diagnosis of lymph node metastasis for patients with clinical stage II/III esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Patients assigned to receive surgery and postoperative chemotherapy in JCOG9907 trial were studied to evaluate the concordance between clinical and pathological nodes. Preoperative diagnosis was based on computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. Among 166 patients in the postoperative group, 160 with sufficient pathological data were studied. The patient background characteristics were: male/female, 147/13; median age, 61 years (range 39-75 years); primary tumor site (upper/middle/lower), 15/76/69; cN0/cN1, 53/107. The sensitivity and specificity of clinical nodes for diagnosis of pathological nodes were 72.7 and 51.3 %, respectively; the positive and negative predictive values were 82.2 and 37.7 %, respectively. The lymph nodes overestimated in the preoperative diagnosis included thoracic paratracheal lymph nodes (#106) (n = 8), middle thoracic paraesophageal lymph nodes (#108) (n = 4), lymph nodes along the lesser curvature (#3) (n = 4), right cardiac lymph nodes (#1) (n = 3), and left cardiac lymph nodes (#2) (n = 2). Diagnosis of clinical nodes has low specificity and low negative predictive value for prediction of pathological node category in the preoperative diagnosis of lymph node metastasis for patients with locally advanced resectable esophageal cancer. Clinical staging techniques must therefore be improved for accurate preoperative diagnosis.

High dose chemoradiotherapy followed by esophagectomy for adenocarcinoma of the esophagus and gastroesophageal junction: results of a phase II study of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group.

To assess the toxicity, local response, and survival associated with multimodality therapy in a cooperative group setting, patients with biopsy-proven clinical Stage I or II adenocarcinoma of the esophagus (staged according to 1983 American Joint Committee on Cancer criteria) or gastroesophageal junction were treated with concomitant radiation and chemotherapy followed by esophagectomy. Radiotherapy was administered in daily 2-gray (Gy) fractions 5 days a week until a total of 60 Gy was reached. 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) was infused continuously at a dose of 1000 mg/m2/day for 96 hours on Days 2-5 and 28-31. On Day 2, a 10 mg/m2 bolus of mitomycin was injected intravenously. Esophagectomy was performed 4-8 weeks following completion of the radiotherapy. During the 18-month study period (August 1991 through January 1993), 46 eligible patients were accrued from 21 institutions. Eight patients were Stage I and 38 Stage II. Eighty-seven percent of patients (40 of 46) received 6000 centigray (cGy), and all received >5000 cGy. Seventy-eight percent of patients (36 of 46) received >90% of the planned 5-FU dose. Follow-up ranged from 11 to 36 months (median, 22 months). There were eight treatment-related deaths; two were preoperative (from adult respiratory distress syndrome) and six were postoperative. Complete or partial response prior to esophagectomy was observed in 63% of cases, stable disease in 15%, and progression in 20%. Thirty-three patients underwent esophagectomy (transhiatal, n=14; Ivor Lewis, n=16; other, n=3). No tumor was found in the specimens resected from 8 of these 33 patients; this represented a pathologic complete response rate of 17% overall and 24% for those who underwent esophagectomy. Overall median survival was 16.6 months, 1-year survival 57%, and 2-year survival 27%. Survival was significantly worse for patients with circumferential cancers (median, 18.1 months vs. 8.3 months; P <0.05). High dose radiation therapy with concurrent 5-FU and mitomycin may be administered to patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma with acceptable morbidity. However, in a cooperative group setting, esophagogastrectomy following intensive chemoradiotherapy is associated with excessive morbidity and mortality. Circumferential tumor growth is a significant adverse prognostic factor.

[Positron emission tomography for preoperative lymph node diagnosis in esophageal carcinoma].

Exact preoperative staging is a prerequisite for the indication and the choice of appropriate operative technique for patients with esophageal carcinoma. The objective of this prospective study was to assess whether positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) increases the accuracy of preoperative lymph node staging with standard computed tomography (CT) and thus leads to a different surgical approach. Fifty-eight patients with carcinoma of the esophagus (46 men and 12 women) with a median age of 61 years underwent FDG-PET imaging of the neck, chest, and abdomen as well as CT of the chest and abdomen. Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy were calculated for both imaging techniques to evaluate the detection of histologically verified lymph node metastases. The FDG-PET showed higher specificity, whereas CT proved to be more accurate for detecting lymph node metastases not only of the abdomen (73% vs 59%) but also of the thorax (73% vs 63%). Resections were transhiatal in 23 patients and transthoracal in 16. As a supplement to conventional CT diagnostic procedure, FDG-PET was not decisive for the surgical approach. Altogether, pretherapeutical PET imaging did not increase the accuracy of lymph node staging for our patients with esophageal carcinoma, which had already been defined through CT. Therefore, no new consequences resulted for the surgical procedure. Due to the high costs involved with PET investigation, lymph node staging with it is momentarily indicated mainly for clinical studies and when CT does not offer unequivocal results. Increased sensitivity of the already advantageous whole-body FDG-PET imaging by means of tumor-affinitive radiopharmaceuticals and optimized apparatus resolution could lead to new indications for this staging procedure.

[The local control of radiotherapy following Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy in the patients with stage II A middle-third thoracic esophageal cancer].

To investigate the local control of radiotherapy following Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy in the patients with stage IIA middle-third thoracic esophageal cancer. From June 1999 to June 2002, 125 patients with stage IIA squamous cell carcinoma of the middle-third thoracic esophagus were treated with Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy with two-fields lymphadenectomy. The survival rate was calculated by Kaplan-meier method and the difference of recurrence rate compared by chi(2) test. The 3-year and 5-year survival rates were 58.4% and 43.2% in this group, respectively. Tumor recurrence occurred in 61 of the 125 patients (48.8%) within 3 years after operation. Of all cases of recurrence, 38 patients (30.4%) developed locoregional recurrence (including 5 patients with locoregional and hematogenous recurrence simultaneously). The locoregional recurrence rate of patients who received postoperative radiotherapy (20.3%) was significantly lower than that of both the group who received adjunctive chemotherapy (40.6%) and the group without adjunctive therapy (41.4%) (P < 0.05). About half of the patients would develop recurrence disease within 3 years after Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy with two-fields lymph-adenectomy. Radiotherapy following Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy is an effective strategy to control local recurrence of the stage II A middle-third thoracic esophageal cancer.

Esophageal Cancer -- Treatment / Management -- Surgical Resection

Localized resectable esophageal cancers comprise approximately 22% of all cases, and those presenting with regional lymph node spread comprise another 30%. The goal of surgical resection is curative. The first-line esophagectomy is offered to T1N0M0 (not endoscopic resection candidate) and selected T2N0M0. Neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy (CRT) followed by esophagectomy is offered to T2 with positive disease node, T3, and selected T4a disease without metastasis. Relative exclusion criteria for esophagectomy include elderly patients (offered to selected patients) and high-risk patients with comorbid medical conditions. The presence of metastatic disease to other organs or extra-regional lymph nodes is an absolute contraindication to esophagectomy. Surgical procedures are divided accordingly to the anatomical position of esophageal cancer. Cervical esophageal cancer usually requires resection of portions of the larynx, pharynx, thyroid, and proximal esophagus with lower esophagus preservation. Thoracic esophageal cancer will include a total esophagectomy (cervical esophagogastrostomy) with radical two-field lymph node dissection and jejunostomy feeding tube placement. EGJ cancer will involve total esophagectomy and partial or extended gastrectomy. Thoracic cancer resection for the middle to lower esophagus can be divided into three major techniques in the United States: transhiatal, transthoracic (Ivor-Lewis), and tri-incisional esophagectomy. Esophagectomy guidelines recommend at least 15 lymph node resection for adequate staging, and this leads to s significant reduction in mortality (5-year disease-specific survival; 55% less than 11 nodes were resected, 66% for 11 to 17 nodes resected, and 75% more than 18 nodes resected). A positive circumferential resection margin has higher overall mortality compared to the negative (OR 4.02, 2.25 to 7.20, p < 0.001). Reported surgery mortality rates should be less than 5%, and a 5-year survival rate ranges from 5% to 34%. Thoracic, minimally invasive esophagectomy with abdominal laparoscopic intervention offers a surgical recovery advantage with promising better oncologic outcomes over an open thoracotomy and abdominal laparotomy procedure with an experienced surgeon at a center of excellence. Patients’ nutritional status on esophageal cancer complicated by dysphagia before and after surgery should be monitored and should be palliated with esophageal stents, lasers therapy, endoscopic dilation, and gastric/jejunal feeding tube when necessary and feasible.

Subtotal esophagectomy with extended 2-field lymph node dissection for thoracic esophageal cancer.

To examine the efficacy of the Ivor Lewis esophagectomy with extended 2-field lymph node dissection for thoracic esophageal carcinoma we reviewed our experience. We analyzed the cases of 147 consecutive patients who underwent subtotal esophagectomy with extended 2-field lymph node dissection through Ivor Lewis approach for esophageal cancer from January 1996 through December 2000. Eighty-six patients were operated on for cancer of the midthoracic esophagus, 48 for cancer of the lower thoracic esophagus, and 13 for cancer of the aortal segment of the esophagus. No patient had received chemotherapy or radiotherapy before operation. There were 113 men (76.9%) and 34 women. Median age was 57 years (range 51-65 years). Postsurgical pathological studies revealed squamous cell carcinoma in 139 patients (94.6%), adenocarcinoma in five (3.4%), and adenosquamous carcinoma in three (2%). Positive abdominal and/or mediastinal lymph nodes were found in 122 patients (82.9%). At mean 43 nodes (range from 32 up to 75) were studied for each patient. Even in T(1)-T(2) tumors mediastinal or abdominal lymph nodes are involved in up to 80% of cases. However, in T(3)-T(4) stages the frequency of lymph node involvement is significantly higher (P<0.05). Postsurgical staging was as follows: stage I in three patients (2%), stage IIa in 20 (13.6%), stage IIb in 29 (19.7%), stage III in 54 (36.8%), and stage IV in 41 (27.9%). All distant metastases were lymphogenous. The operative mortality rate was 6.1%, and complications occurred in 62 patients (42.1%). The overall 5-year survive rate was 28.8% (median survival 36.1 months). The 5-year survival rate for patients in stage IIa was 59%; for those in stage IIb, 39.5%; for patients in stage III, 26.7%; and 0% for patients in stage IV. Subtotal esophagectomy with extended 2-field lymph node dissection through Ivor Lewis approach for esophageal cancer is a safe operation. Long-term survival is stage dependent. Effective multimodality treatment may be helpful for patients with advanced disease.

[Endosonography in the preoperative evaluation of cancers of the esophagus].

To assess the diagnostic accuracy of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) for the local and regional staging of esophageal cancer, and its possible alteration resulting from the performance of preoperative chemoradiation. Prospective study of 85 consecutive patients with esophageal cancer evaluated by EUS and operated on between January 1992 and December 1995. 28 of these patients had received previous induction therapy. In all cases, EUS examination was performed by the same physician not informed about the results of previous morphological explorations. Histopathological analysis of all operative specimens was performed by the same pathologist, not informed about the results of EUS. Data were collected by another independent observer. EUS examination resulted in incomplete staging in 8 patients (9.5%) with severe stenosis precluding endoscope passage. The accuracy, specificity and sensitivity of EUS in detecting the depth of esophageal involvement (T0-2 vs. T3-4) were 82.3%, 78%, and 86% respectively, and 72%, 70%, and 73% respectively for lymph node metastasis. The overall accuracy of EUS in identifying the preoperative stage was 67%, with a clear-cut alteration when patients had received induction therapy (61% vs 72%). On the other hand, 7 (64%) of the 11 patients thought to have a complete response at endosonography had no residual tumor. EUS provides precise information for the preoperative identification of locally advanced esophageal tumor, even after induction therapy. The latter alters the diagnostic accuracy of EUS, although complete responders could be identified in two-thirds of cases.

Phase 2 trial of preoperative irinotecan plus cisplatin and conformal radiotherapy, followed by surgery for esophageal cancer.

Esophagectomy for locally advanced esophageal cancer (LAEC) is associated with limited survival. Trimodality therapy yields a small survival advantage, with cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil regimens most frequently studied. Newer regimens may impact these poor outcomes. This phase 2 trial assessed the feasibility and efficacy of induction chemoradiotherapy with cisplatin and irinotecan followed by esophagectomy. Patients with LAEC of the thoracic esophagus or gastroesophageal junction underwent chemotherapy with preoperative irinotecan (65 mg/m(2)) plus cisplatin (30 mg/m(2)) on Weeks 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, and 8 with concurrent conformal radiotherapy (40 grays [Gy]/20 fractions during Weeks 4-7) and external beam boost (10 Gy/5 fractions at Week 8). Esophagectomy was performed between Weeks 12 and 16. Pathologic response was the primary endpoint with follow-up data on progression, survival, and toxicity as secondary endpoints. Fifty-two patients were enrolled from November 2002 to October 2005. Nineteen patients had American Joint Committee on Cancer stage II, 22 had stage III, and 11 had stage IVA disease. Grade 3 to 4 toxicity (graded according to the National Cancer Institute Common Toxicity Criteria 2.0) during induction included neutropenia (36%), febrile neutropenia (8%), diarrhea (10%), and esophagitis (4%). Three patients withdrew from treatment due to toxicity. There was 1 treatment-related death. Clinical responses included complete response in 2%, partial response in 30%, stable disease in 62%, and progressive disease in 6% of patients. Dysphagia improved/resolved in 72% of patients during induction. Forty-three patients underwent esophagectomy and 7 (16%) achieved pathologic complete responses. Median and 3-year overall survival for patients receiving trimodality therapy was 36 months and 51%, respectively. In LAEC, concurrent irinotecan/cisplatin and radiotherapy followed by esophagectomy is reported to be associated with dysphagia improvement in 72% of patients, a significant but manageable toxicity profile, and encouraging survival compared with historic controls.

Curative treatment of esophageal cancer; an evidenced based review.

In 2013, roughly 18,000 cases of esophageal cancer will be diagnosed in the United States with more than 15,000 people dying from the disease. Worldwide, an estimated 482,300 new esophageal cancer cases were diagnosed with 406,800 deaths in 2008. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and adenocarcinoma (AC) account for >90% of all esophageal cancer cases. The authors will examine the role of radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and surgery in the curative management of esophageal cancer by examining randomized control data, single arm phase II trials, several recently published meta-analyses, as well as retrospective data where there is no clinical trial data available. The role of positron emission tomography (PET) will be reviewed as well. Current data support the role of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgical resection for locally advanced esophageal cancer with 3-year overall survival ranging from 30% to 60%. The benefit of adjuvant chemoradiation therapy is limited to margin positive and/or node positive patients. There is emerging data questioning the survival benefit of surgical resection after chemoradiotherapy. External beam radiation therapy alone results in very few long-term survivors and is considered palliative at best. Radiation dose-escalation has failed to improve local control or survival. PET scanning is vital in staging and has become a strong predictor of response and survival. Preoperative or definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy is the established standard of care for locally advanced cancers of the esophagus. While preoperative chemotherapy is supported by level 1 evidence, the true benefit of induction chemotherapy before chemoradiotherapy has not been established in a prospective randomized control trial. The role of surgery in the management of SCC is still a hotly debated subject, however, it is still recommended for AC. There is no data to support adjuvant chemotherapy after preoperative chemoradiotherapy. The benefit of neoadjuvant chemotherapy seems to be limited AC. Radiation without chemotherapy is palliative and never curative. PET continues to be integrated into treatment decisions and predicts for response and survival after therapy.

Treatments for esophageal cancer: a review.

Esophageal cancer is the eighth most common form of cancer worldwide. The treatments for esophageal cancer depend on its etiology. For mucosal cancer, endoscopic mucosal resection and endoscopic submucosal dissection are standard, while for locally advanced cancer, esophagectomy remains the mainstay. The three most common techniques for thoracic esophagectomy are the transhiatal approach, the Ivor Lewis esophagectomy (right thoracotomy and laparotomy), and the McKeown technique (right thoracotomy followed by laparotomy and neck incision with cervical anastomosis). Surgery for carcinoma of the cervical esophagus requires an extensive procedure with laryngectomy in many cases. When the tumor is more advanced, neoadjuvant chemotherapy or neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy is added. The theoretical advantages of adding chemotherapy to the treatment of esophageal cancer are potential tumor down-staging prior to surgery, as well as targeting micrometastases and, thus, decreasing the risk of distant metastasis. Cisplatin- and 5-fluorouracil-based regimes are used worldwide. Chemoradiotherapy is the standard for unresectable esophageal cancer and could also be considered as an option for resectable tumors. For patients who are medically or technically inoperable, concurrent chemoradiotherapy should be the standard of care. Although neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery or salvage surgery after definitive chemoradiotherapy is a practical treatment; judicious patient selection is crucial. It is important to have a thorough understanding of these therapeutic modalities to assist in this endeavor.

Lymph node analysis in esophageal resection: American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0060 trial.

The American Joint Committee on Cancer staging of esophageal cancer has been criticized for not establishing a minimum standard for lymphadenectomy, and for relying on location of nodes involved rather than their number. The objective of this study was to review the current practice of American surgeons with regard to lymph node assessment during esophageal resection. The operative and pathology reports of patients who underwent staging by computed tomography and fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography and subsequent resection for esophageal cancer (multiinstitutional American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0060 trial) were analyzed. One hundred forty-five patients underwent resection. Operative and pathology reports were unavailable in 11 patients. The results of the remaining 134 resections (Ivor-Lewis, n = 64; transhiatal, n = 59; other, n = 11) were reviewed. Overall, 13 +/- 9 (mean +/- standard deviation) lymph nodes were evaluated per patient. More lymph nodes were evaluated in patients undergoing Ivor-Lewis (15 +/- 9) than transhiatal esophagectomy (9 +/- 7; p < 0.001). The mean number of distinct lymph node stations analyzed per patient was 3 +/- 2. In 38% (51 of 134) of patients the nodes attached to the specimen were evaluated without any distinction among nodal stations. The practice of submitting named packets of nodal material resulted in 16 +/- 9 nodes per case, as opposed to the practice of submitting an entire specimen for the pathologists to dissect, which yielded 10 +/- 8 nodes (p < 0.001). There is considerable variability and room to improve in the extent of resection and pathologic evaluation of esophagectomy specimens. A uniform standard for esophageal cancer resection is warranted to improve the precision and value of pathologic staging.

Minimally invasive transhiatal esophagectomy: lessons learned.

Minimally invasive esophagectomy has the potential to minimize the morbidity of esophageal resection and is particularly suited to the transhiatal approach. This report details our experience with this technique and the lessons we have learned. A retrospective analysis of patients who underwent minimally invasive transhiatal esophagectomy was performed. Parameters assessed included patient demographics, tumor pathology, operative and postoperative course, and survival. Eighteen patients underwent minimally invasive transhiatal esophagectomy [median age = 69 years (range = 36-79)]. Seventeen were operated on for cancer, including 13 adenocarcinomas and 4 squamous cell carcinomas (median histological stage = 2, range = 1-3), and 1 for high-grade dysplasia in Barrett's. One patient had neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Two patients underwent nonemergency conversion to open surgery. The median duration of operation was 300 min (range = 180-450). All anastomoses were end-to-side hand-sewn. No patients received a red cell transfusion. The 30-day mortality was zero. Complications developed in 15 patients, including 7 respiratory and 10 recurrent laryngeal nerve injuries. There were two anastomotic leaks. Six patients developed stenosis requiring dilatation. The median length of stay was 15 days (range = 10-39). The median number of nodes harvested was 10 (range = 2-26). At a median follow-up of 13 months (range = 4-42), 13 patients were alive. Minimally invasive transhiatal esophagectomy is feasible in our unit, with acceptable mortality. The high rate of anastomotic stenosis has resulted in a change to a semimechanical, side-to-side isoperistaltic technique. The high rate of recurrent laryngeal nerve injuries has resulted in the avoidance of metal retractors at the tracheo-esophageal groove.

[Clinicopathological studies of the recurrence of esophageal squamous cell cancer--with special reference to the mode of recurrence and operative procedure].

In 93 out of 201 patients (46%) with squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus who underwent radical resection (excluding death within 30 days after operation), the site of recurrence could be identified by means of X-ray, CT, ultrasonography, and biopsy. Recurrence was found in 55% of 93 cases within 12 months after surgery and in 86% of 93 cases within 24 months. Of 93 patients with recurrences, lymph node recurrences were present in 44 cases, visceral recurrences in 32 cases, both lymph node and visceral recurrences in 11 cases and others in 6 cases. Neck and/or upper mediastinal lymph node recurrences were found in 10 out of 15 patients who had recurrences within 3 months after surgery. Careful examination should be made in the left recurrent nerve chain and extended lymph node resection of upper mediastinal region should be performed under the adequate indication. Esophageal squamous cell cancer has a tendency to recur in the lymph nodes initially, and visceral metastases may occur thereafter. The incidence of visceral recurrence increased remarkably, when neck and/or upper mediastinal lymph nodes were involved at the time of operation. Accordingly, both irradiation and chemotherapy should also be applied for improving the prognosis of esophageal carcinoma.

[Associated factors of postoperative relapse and metastasis in pT1bN0M0-pT4aN0M0 thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma].

To investigate the associated high risk factors of postoperative relapse and metastasis for patients with confined tumors (grade pT1b-4a) without lymph-node metastases (pN0) in thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Clinicopathological and follow up data of ESCC patients undergoing radical surgical resection as primary treatment in the Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Chest Hospital between January 2004 and December 2012 from Hospital Database were retrospectively collected. The inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) the first development of ESCC confirmed by histopathology without lymphatic and distant metastasis; (2) pathological stage of pT1bN0M0 to pT4aN0M0 according to the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) in 2009; (3) curative trans-thoracic esophagectomy with R0 (tumor-free surgical margin) resection, using the Ivor-Lewis or McKeown procedure; two-field lymphadenectomy or three-field lymph node dissection based on the positive results of preoperative cervical ultrasonography examination or CT scan; (4) without adjuvant chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy before and after operation; (5) complete follow-up data. Logistic regression analysis was employed to identify the clinicopathological factors affecting the postoperative relapse and metastasis. A total of 112 patients were eligible, including 94 male cases and 18 female cases; age of (58.6±7.7) years; squamous carcinoma of upper thorax in 25 cases, of middle thorax in 67 cases and of lower thorax segment in 20 cases; 12 cases of high-differentiated ESCC, 49 cases of moderate-differentiated ESCC, poorly-differentiated ESCC in 48 cases; 4 cases of I(a stage, 9 cases of I(b, 24 cases of II(a, 62 cases of II(b, 13 cases of III(a; the tumor length >4 cm in 43 cases, ≤4 cm in 69 cases. Forty-three (38.4%) patients presented relapse or metastasis during the follow-up, including 24 (21.4%) of loco-regional relapse, 13 (11.6%) of distant metastasis, and 6(5.4%) of both above. Multivariate regression analysis revealed that poorly-differentiated tumor (OR=1.899, 95%CI:1.233-2.925, P=0.004), upper-middle location (OR=2.351, 95%CI:1.188-4.653, P=0.014), and tumor length >4 cm (OR=2.381, 95%CI:1.009-5.618, P=0.048) were independent risk factors of overall postoperative relapse and metastasis for thoracic ESCC with stage pT1b N0M0-T4aN0M0. Further stratified analysis identified that only poorly-differentiated tumor (OR=1.730, 95%CI:1.121-2.671, P=0.013) was an independent risk factor of loco-regional relapse, whereas pathological stage II(b-III(a (OR=3.372, 95%CI:1.206-9.428, P=0.021) was an independent risk factor of distant metastasis. Poorly-differentiated tumor, tumor length >4 cm, and upper-middle location may be regarded as high risk factors for predicting overall relapse and metastasis of pN0 thoracic ESCC patients after esophagectomy. Moreover, poorly-differentiated tumor is the only independent risk factor of postoperative loco-regional relapse, meanwhile it should be noted that pathological stage II(b-III(a is closely related to postoperative distant metastasis.

[Endoscopy in the diagnosis and therapy of inoperable esophageal carcinoma after radiotherapy and combined radiochemotherapy].

Treatment of inoperable (locally advanced) esophagus cancer, even today, has been a subject of numerous clinical researches. Combination of several clinical modalities is needed, of radiotherapy and chemotherapy the most frequently. This combination applied as neoadjuvant or concomitant brought to improvement of treatment results of these patients. Local control is still a big problem, since majority of these patients die of local treatment "failure". Because of that, estimation of the local control is very important, i.e. assessment of the tumor response the treatment. For those reasons, a study has been conducted on 52 patients with locally advanced esophagus tumor, who in the first group of 25 patients, were treated only by radiotherapy, and in the second group of 27 patients, by combined radio-chemotherapy. Pretherapy evaluation, evaluation of esophagus stenosis, as well as the tumor regression to conducted treatment, were done in all patients by radiography and endoscopy and the findings were compared: there was no statistically significant difference between investigated methods (p > 0.05). Although bigger number of the tumor complete regressions was verified by radiography (6 in the first group and 5 in the second group of patients) in relation to endoscopic finding (3 in the first group and 2 in the second group of patients), which had no microscopical evidence of remaining disease. Partial tumor regression made greater differences between investigated methods (10:4 in the first group and 6:3 in the second group of patients).