Lymph node dissection in esophageal carcinoma: Minimally invasive esophagectomy vs open surgery

A systematic review and meta-analysis of mediastinoscopy-assisted transhiatal esophagectomy (MATHE)

BACKGROUND

Transhiatal esophagectomy (THE) avoids thoracotomy but sacrifices mediastinal lymphadenectomy. Mediastinoscopy-assisted transhiatal esophagectomy (MATHE) allows for visualisation and en-bloc dissection of mediastinal lymph nodes while retaining the benefits of THE. However, given its novel inception, there is a paucity of literature. This study aimed to conduct the first meta-analysis to explore the efficacy of MATHE and clarify its role in the future of esophagectomy.

METHODS

Four databases (PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and Cochrane Library) were searched from inception to May 1, 2023. Studies were included if they reported outcomes for patients with esophageal cancer who underwent MATHE. Meta-analyses of proportions and pooled means were performed for the outcomes of intraoperative blood loss, lymph node (LN) harvest, mean hospital length of stay (LOS), mean operative time, R0 resection, conversion rates, 30-day mortality rate, 5-year OS, and surgical complications (anastomotic leak, cardiovascular [CVS] and pulmonary complications, chyle leak and recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy [RLN]). Sensitivity analyses were performed for outcomes with substantial statistical heterogeneity.

RESULTS

The search yielded 223 articles; 28 studies and 1128 patients were included in our analysis. Meta-analyses of proportions yielded proportion rates: 30-day mortality (0 %, 95 %CI 0-0), 5-year OS (60.5 %, 95 %CI 47.6-72.7), R0 resection (100 %, 95 %CI 99.3-100), conversion rate (0.1 %, 95 %CI 0-1.2). Among surgical complications, RLN palsy (14.6 %, 95 %CI 9.5-20.4) were most observed, followed by pulmonary complications (11.3 %, 95 %CI 7-16.2), anastomotic leak (9.7 %, 95 %CI 6.8-12.8), CVS complications (2.3 %, 95 %CI 0.9-4.1) and chyle leak (0.02 %, 95 %CI 0-0.8). Meta-analysis of pooled means yielded means: LN harvest (18.6, 95 %CI 14.3-22.9), intraoperative blood loss (247.1 ml, 95 %CI 173.6-320.6), hospital LOS (18.1 days, 95 %CI 14.4-21.8), and operative time (301.5 min, 95 %CI 238.4-364.6). There was moderate-to-high statistical heterogeneity. Findings were robust to sensitivity analyses.

CONCLUSION

MATHE is associated with encouraging post-operative mortality and complication rates, while allowing for radical mediastinal lymphadenectomy with reasonable lymph node harvest.

Ten-Year Survival and Recurrence Patterns After Three-Field Lymph Node Dissection for Squamous Cell and Adenocarcinoma of the Esophagus

OBJECTIVE

The aim was to determine the prevalence of metastases to the cervical and recurrent laryngeal cervicothoracic (CT) nodes as well as survival and recurrence patterns after esophagectomy with three-field lymph node dissection (TFD) in patients with predominately adenocarcinoma (AC) of the esophagus.

BACKGROUND

Although esophagectomy with TFD is commonly practiced in Japan and Southeast Asia for squamous cell cancer (SCC) of the esophagus, there are only a handful of reports about its' utilization and survival benefit in North American patients.

METHODS

This is a retrospective case series of patients who had an esophagectomy with TFD. The primary outcomes of interest were the prevalence of nodal metastases to the CT nodes as well as overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival. Secondary outcomes included time to recurrence, recurrence patterns, operative morbidity as well as 30 and 90-day mortality.

RESULTS

Two hundred forty-two patients with esophageal cancer (AC: 67%) underwent esophagectomy with TFD. Metastases to the CT nodes were present in 56 patients (23%: AC 20% and SCC 30%). Positive CT nodes were present in 14% of pT1/T2 tumors and 30% of pT3 tumors. For the 56 patients with CT positive nodes, 5-year OS was 25% (AC:16%; SCC:39%). Fifteen of 56 (26.7%) patients with metastases to the CT nodes were alive and disease-free at a minimum of 5 years postoperatively. Ten-year OS was 43% for all patients with SCC and 28% for patients with AC.

CONCLUSIONS

Metastases to the CT nodes are common in both SCC and AC of the esophagus and may be present in at least 14% of early lesions. Five-year survival is encouraging particularly for patients with esophageal SCC cancer.

Comparisons of minimally invasive esophagectomy and open esophagectomy in lymph node metastasis/dissection for thoracic esophageal cancer

BACKGROUND

The study aimed to clarify the characteristics of lymph node metastasis (LNM) and to compare the oncologic outcomes of minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) with open esophagectomy (OE) in terms of lymph node dissection (LND) in thoracic esophageal cancer patients.

METHODS

The data from esophageal cancer patients who underwent MIE or OE from January 2016 to January 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. The characteristics of LNM in thoracic esophageal cancer were discussed, and the differences in numbers of LND, LND rate, and LNM rate/degree of upper mediastinum between MIE and OE were compared.

RESULTS

For overall characteristics of LNM in 249 included patients, the highest rate of LNM was found in upper mediastinum, while LNM rate in middle and lower mediastinum, and abdomen increased with the tumor site moving down. The patients were divided into MIE ( n  = 204) and OE groups ( n  = 45). In terms of number of LND, there were significant differences in upper mediastinum between MIE and OE groups (8 [5, 11] vs. 5 [3, 8], P  < 0.001). The comparative analysis of regional lymph node showed there was no significant difference except the subgroup of upper mediastinal 2L and 4L group (3 [1, 5] vs. 0 [0, 2], P  < 0.001 and 0 [0, 2] vs. 0, P  = 0.012, respectively). Meanwhile, there was no significant difference in terms of LND rate except 2L (89.7% [183/204] vs. 71.1% [32/45], P  = 0.001) and 4L (41.2% [84/204] vs . 22.2% [10/45], P  = 0.018) groups. For LNM rate of T3 stage, there was no significant difference between MIE and OE groups, and the comparative analysis of regional lymph node showed that there was no significant difference except 2L group (11.1% [5/45] vs . 38.1% [8/21], P  = 0.025). The LNM degree of OE group was significantly higher than that of MIE group (27.2% [47/173] vs . 7.6% [32/419], P  < 0.001), and the comparative analysis of regional LNM degree showed that there was no significant difference except 2L (34.7% [17/49] vs . 7.7% [13/169], P  < 0.001) and 4L (23.8% [5/21] vs . 3.9% [2/51], P  = 0.031) subgroups.

CONCLUSION

MIE may have an advantage in LND of upper mediastinum 2L and 4L groups, while it was similar to OE in other stations of LND.

Effect of single-port inflatable mediastinoscopy simultaneous laparoscopic-assisted radical esophagectomy on respiration and circulation

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

We previously developed a new surgical method, namely, single-port inflatable mediastinoscopy simultaneous laparoscopic-assisted radical esophagectomy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of carbon dioxide inflation on respiration and circulation using this approach.

METHODS

From April 2018 to October 2020, 105 patients underwent this novel surgical approach. The changes in respiratory and circulatory functions were reported when the mediastinal pressure and pneumoperitoneum pressure were 10 and 12 mmHg, respectively. Data on blood loss, operative time, and postoperative complications were also collected.

RESULTS

104 patients completed the operation successfully, except for 1 patient who was converted to thoracotomy because of intraoperative injury. During the operation, respectively, the heart rate, mean arterial pressure, central venous pressure, peak airway pressure, end-expiratory partial pressure of carbon dioxide and partial pressure of carbon dioxide increased in an admissibility range. The pH and oxygenation index decreased 1 h after inflation, but these values were all within a safe and acceptable range and restored to the baseline level after CO2 elimination. Postoperative complications included anastomotic fistula (8.6%), pleural effusion that needed to be treated (8.6%), chylothorax (0.9%), pneumonia (7.6%), arrhythmia (3.8%) and postoperative hoarseness (18.2%). There were no cases of perioperative death.

CONCLUSIONS

When the inflation pressure in the mediastinum and abdomen was 10 mmHg and 12 mmHg, respectively, the inflation of carbon dioxide from single-port inflatable mediastinoscopy simultaneous laparoscopic-assisted radical esophagectomy did not cause serious changes in respiratory and circulatory function or increase perioperative complications.

Risk factors for lymph node metastasis of the left recurrent laryngeal nerve in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Background

The factors for left recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) lymph node (LN) metastasis have important guiding significance for whether the left RLN LNs should be dissected in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), but few studies are currently available. To analyze the risk factors of LN metastasis of the left RLN area and to assess which LNs should be dissected in ESCC.

Methods

This was a retrospective study of patients who underwent McKeown minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) (no neoadjuvant therapy) at Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital (from January 2016 to December 2019). The detection of left RLN LNs using enhanced computed tomography (CT) was compared with the pathological examination.

Results

Of the total 94 participants, 43 had LN metastasis. The metastatic LNs were mainly located next to left (18.1%) and right (14.9%) RLN, and the left gastric artery (13.8%). Tumor size, LN size, tumor invasion (T stage), N stage, and tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage were associated with left RLN LNs metastasis, while LN size was the only independently associated factor [odds ratio (OR) =1.569, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.259–1.956, P=0.0012]. The area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) reached 0.877, with 64% sensitivity and 75% specificity using a cutoff of 5.5 mm LN size.

Conclusions

The size of left RLN LN is independently associated with metastasis. Left RLN LNs >5.5 mm at CT examination are more likely to be positive and should probably be dissected.

Minimally invasive techniques for transthoracic oesophagectomy for oesophageal cancer: systematic review and network meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Oesophagectomy is a demanding operation that can be performed by different approaches including open surgery or a combination of minimal access techniques. This systematic review and network meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the clinical outcomes of open, minimally invasive and robotic oesophagectomy techniques for oesophageal cancer.

METHODS

A systematic literature search was conducted for studies reporting open oesophagectomy, laparoscopically assisted oesophagectomy (LAO), thoracoscopically assisted oesophagectomy (TAO), totally minimally invasive oesophagectomy (MIO) or robotic MIO (RAMIO) for oesophagectomy. A network meta-analysis of intraoperative (operating time, blood loss), postoperative (overall complications, anastomotic leaks, chyle leak, duration of hospital stay) and oncological (R0 resection, lymphadenectomy) outcomes, and survival was performed.

RESULTS

Ninety-eight studies involving 32 315 patients were included in the network meta-analysis (open 17 824, 55·2 per cent; LAO 1576, 4·9 per cent; TAO 2421 7·5 per cent; MIO 9558, 29·6 per cent; RAMIO 917, 2·8 per cent). Compared with open oesophagectomy, both MIO and RAMIO were associated with less blood loss, significantly lower rates of pulmonary complications, shorter duration of stay and higher lymph node yield. There were no significant differences between surgical techniques in surgical-site infections, chyle leak, and 30- and 90-day mortality. MIO and RAMIO had better 1- and 5-year survival rates respectively compared with open surgery.

CONCLUSION

Minimally invasive and robotic techniques for oesophagectomy are associated with reduced perioperative morbidity and duration of hospital stay, with no compromise of oncological outcomes but no improvement in perioperative mortality.

Application of esophageal wire traction in lymph node dissection during three-hole thoracoscopic McKeown esophagectomy

INTRODUCTION

The quality of left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph node dissection is critical in esophageal cancer. We investigated whether esophageal wire traction in three-hole thoracoscopic esophagectomy can improve the same.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed the data of 98 patients who underwent thoracoscopic esophagectomy in our center from January 2018 to July 2018: 36 patients with esophageal wire traction and 62 patients without traction (control group). The clearance time for left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes, thoracic bleeding volume, number of left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes, and complications were recorded.

RESULTS

The observation group had a shorter clearance time for the left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes (15.8 ± 6.9 min vs. 20.00 ± 6.2 min), less thoracic bleeding (55.8 ± 30.2 mL vs. 70.7 ± 30.3 mL), and higher number of dissected left recurrent laryngeal lymph nodes (3.3 ± 1.4 vs. 2.5 ± 1.1) than the control group. There was no significant difference in the incidence of anastomotic leakage, pulmonary infection, arrhythmia, chylothorax, and nerve injury.

CONCLUSIONS

Esophageal wire traction shortens the clearance time for the left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes, reduces thoracic bleeding, and improves the quality of left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph node dissection in three-hole thoracoscopic esophagectomy.

Adjuvant therapy for pathological T3N0M0 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Background

Tumors invading the depth of adventitia (T3) are the most common pathological type of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). For patients without lymph nodes metastasis, the role of adjuvant therapy is uncertain. This study was intended to retrospectively analyze the survival effects of postoperative adjuvant therapy in such patients.

Methods

A total of 200 patients with pathological T3N0M0 (pT3N0M0) ESCC from January 2012 to September 2014 were enrolled, including a surgery-alone group (Group S) of 111 patients and a surgery followed with adjuvant chemo/radiation/chemoradiation therapy group (Group S + aCRT) of 89 patients.

Results

There was no significant difference in preoperative basic characteristics and postoperative complications between the two groups. Among all patients, 5-year overall survival (OS) rate was 56.6% and the 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate was 51.1%, respectively. The 5-year OS rate was 47.2% in Group S, and 68.4% in Group S + aCRT (P=0.004). The 5-year DFS rate was 44.4% in Group S and 59.3% in Group S + aCRT (P=0.036). The 5-year OS and DFS were improved by adjuvant chemoradiotherapy in the subgroups of males, tumor located at the middle of thoracic esophagus, moderate differentiation, number of resected lymph nodes <15. Multivariate analysis showed that adjuvant chemoradiotherapy and female were associated with improved survival.

Conclusions

In our study, the adjuvant therapy was associated with improved survival for patients with pT3N0M0 ESCC.

Outcomes of Open Versus Minimally Invasive Ivor-Lewis Esophagectomy for Cancer: A Propensity-Score Matched Analysis of NSQIP Database

INTRODUCTION

We conducted this analysis to compare the outcomes of open transthoracic esophagectomy (OTTE) and minimally invasive transthoracic esophagectomy (MITTE) when performed for oncologic indications.

METHODS

The NSQIP esophagectomy-targeted database during 2-year period was used. Only patients who underwent elective TTE for oncologic indications were included. Patients were matched per a propensity score for the likelihood of receiving OTTE versus MITTE.

RESULTS

Overall, 2098 esophagectomies were reported; 576 met the inclusion criteria. A total of 161 purely OTTE patients were matched 1:1 with patients who received purely MITTE. OTTE was associated with higher reported rates of abdominal and mediastinal lymphadenectomies (LAD) (26.7% vs. 3.1% and 38.5% vs. 16.1%, respectively; p < 0.001) and had shorter mean operative time (329 vs. 414 min; p < 0.001). However, OTTE patients had higher rates of wound infection (7.5% vs. 1.9%), longer median hospitalization (10 vs. 8 days), more non-home discharges (18.0 vs. 8.1%), and a tendency toward higher rates of postoperative transfusion (13.0% vs. 6.8%; p = 0.092). The overall complications rate was higher in OTTE (46.0% vs. 33.5%; p = 0.028). No difference was noted in the rates of anastomotic leak, negative margins, reoperation, readmission, or mortality. Laparoscopic versus robotic approaches were uniformly comparable, except for higher rates of reported abdominal LAD in laparoscopic and higher rates of reported mediastinal LAD in robotic approach.

CONCLUSIONS

MITTE is comparable to OTTE for oncologic indications in immediate postoperative outcomes. A concern is raised regarding the oncologic outcome given the lower reported rates of lymphadenectomies. Comparison of long-term outcomes is essential to address this concern.

[Minimally invasive esophagectomy]

Certain advantages of minimally invasive esophagectomy compared with conventional approaches were observed. Optimal surgical access, technique and features of anastomoses formation are still unclear despite common tendency to minimally invasive esophageal surgery. Further researches are necessary to resolve these problems and improve the outcomes.

Robot assisted esophagectomy for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Background

This study aims to report our experience with robot assisted esophagectomy (RAE) for the treatment of resectable esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Methods

A series of 249 consecutive patients diagnosed with ESCC who underwent RAE from November 2015 to December 2017 at Shanghai Chest Hospital were evaluated, and their clinical data were reviewed retrospectively. One hundred patients were equally divided into four groups according to the surgery order, and the short-term outcomes in each group were analyzed.

Results

Overall, 249 patients (201 males and 48 females) with a mean age of 63.4±7.3 years who underwent RAE were analyzed. The thoracic procedure was successfully performed with the assistance of a robot. The mean total duration was 250.6±58.4 mins, and the estimated blood loss was 215.5±87.6 mL. R0 resection was performed in 232 (93.2%) patients with a mean total number of dissected lymph nodes of 18.5±9.1 and mean yield of lymph nodes along the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) of 4.4±3.2. The median postoperative hospital stay was 11 days, and no 90-day mortality was observed. Forty-five (18.1%) patients experienced pulmonary complications, and the recurrent laryngeal nerve injury were observed in 38 (15.3%) patients. A significant reduction in thoracic duration was observed after the initial 25 cases (P<0.001). After 50 cases, the dissection of total lymph nodes, mediastinum lymph nodes and lymph nodes along the RLN were significantly improved (P<0.001, P<0.001, P=0.001, respectively) with a shorter postoperative hospital stay (P=0.005).

Conclusions

RAE is a safe and feasible alternative surgical approach for resectable esophageal carcinoma and is associated with a large yield of lymph nodes, especially along the RLN. The surgeon will reach a plateau of operative duration after 25 cases and a plateau of lymphadenectomy after 50 cases.

Minimally invasive esophagectomy is a safe surgical treatment for locally advanced pathologic T3 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Background

Previous studies have shown that minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) is safe and feasible. However, several of these studies had selection bias because they included more patients with early-stage cancer, and no study has compared the outcomes of locally advanced pathologic T3 (pT3) esophageal carcinoma between MIE and open surgery.

Methods

This retrospective analysis included 229 patients with stage pT3 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) who underwent esophagectomy from January 2013 to June 2015. The outcomes included operative outcomes, postoperative complications, recurrence, and mid-term survival.

Results

Sixty-six patients underwent MIE and 163 patients underwent open surgery. No significant difference was noted in blood loss or resection completeness (R0) between the two groups. The operative duration was longer in the MIE than open surgery group (266.5±52.5 vs. 218.1±47.4, P<0.01), and the number of lymph nodes dissected was higher in the MIE than open surgery group (15.2±5.3 vs. 12.9±7.3, P=0.01). There was no significant difference in the length of stay or 30-day mortality rate between the two groups, but the intensive care unit stay was shorter in the MIE group (3 vs. 4, P=0.01). No difference in complications or recurrence was noted between the two groups. The 2-year overall survival (OS) rate was 72.8% for MIE and 69.4% for open surgery, and the 2-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate was 69.4% for MIE and 57.2% for open surgery.

Conclusions

For patients with locally advanced stage pT3 ESCC, MIE has perioperative outcomes comparable to those of open surgery without compromising recurrence or survival.

Recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph node dissection in minimally invasive esophagectomy

Minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) has become increasingly important in the treatment for resectable esophageal cancer. However, it's still controversial about the effects of recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) lymph node dissection in MIE. Patient was placed in the lateral prone position. RLN lymph node dissection was performed in MIE. MIE can get comparable results of RLN lymph node dissection as open surgery. The number of dissected lymph nodes is 9.8±4.3 pieces and the time of lymphadenectomy is about 24 mins. RLN lymph node dissection is feasible and safe in MIE. The helpful surgical techniques include clear exposure of RLN, good collaboration with assistant, esophageal suspension, and so on.