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Background: Robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) is increasingly adopted in centers worldwide, with ongoing refinements to enhance results. This study aims to assess the current state of RAMIE worldwide and to identify potential areas for improvement., Methods: This descriptive study analyzed prospective data from esophageal cancer patients who underwent transthoracic RAMIE in Upper GI International Robotic Association (UGIRA) centers. Main endpoints included textbook outcome rate, surgical techniques, and perioperative outcomes. Analyses were performed separately for intrathoracic (Ivor-Lewis) and cervical anastomosis (McKeown), divided into three time cohorts (2016-2018, 2019-2020, 2021-2023). A sensitivity analysis was conducted with cases after the learning curve (> 70 cases)., Results: Across 28 UGIRA centers, 2012 Ivor-Lewis and 1180 McKeown procedures were performed. Over the time cohorts, textbook outcome rates were 39%, 48%, and 49% for Ivor-Lewis, and 49%, 63%, and 61% for McKeown procedures, respectively. Fully robotic procedures accounted for 66%, 51%, and 60% of Ivor-Lewis procedures, and 53%, 81%, and 66% of McKeown procedures. Lymph node yield showed 27, 30, and 30 nodes in Ivor-Lewis procedures, and 26, 26, and 34 nodes in McKeown procedures. Furthermore, high mediastinal lymphadenectomy was performed in 65%, 43%, and 37%, and 70%, 48%, and 64% of Ivor-Lewis and McKeown procedures, respectively. Anastomotic leakage rates were 22%, 22%, and 16% in Ivor-Lewis cases, and 14%, 12%, and 11% in McKeown cases. Hospital stay was 13, 14, and 13 days for Ivor-Lewis procedures, and 12, 9, and 11 days for McKeown procedures. In Ivor-Lewis and McKeown, respectively, the sensitivity analysis revealed textbook outcome rates of 43%, 54%, and 51%, and 47%, 64%, and 64%; anastomotic leakage rates of 28%, 18%, and 15%, and 13%, 11%, and 10%; and hospital stay of 11, 12, and 12 days, and 10, 9, and 9 days., Conclusions: This study demonstrates favorable outcomes over time in achieving textbook outcome after RAMIE. Areas for improvement include a reduction of anastomotic leakage and shortening of hospital stay., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: The prognosis for patients with esophageal cancer who received neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) followed by surgery has shown improvement in recent years. We sought to identify the critical factors contributing to enhanced survival outcomes., Patients and Methods: We retrospectively examined 427 patients with esophageal cancer treated with nCRT and esophagectomy across two periods: P1 (from 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2011) and P2 (from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2017). The introduction of the CROSS regimen and total meso-esophagectomy in P2 prompted an evaluation of their effects on perioperative outcomes and overall survival (OS)., Results: During P2, the occurrence of recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy increased significantly from 3.9 to 16.8% (p < 0.001), while pneumonia and in-hospital mortality rates remained unchanged. The median OS improved from 19.2 to 29.2 months (p < 0.001) between P1 and P2. Multivariable analysis identified higher nodal yields and the achievement of major response as favorable prognostic factors. Conversely, an involved circumferential resection margin (CRM), an advanced ypN stage, and pneumonia were independently associated with poor outcomes. Patients treated during P2 had a lower prevalence of involved CRM (10% vs. 25.1%, p < 0.001), a higher rate of major response (52.7% vs. 34.8%, p < 0.01), and a greater nodal yield (27.8 vs. 10.9, p < 0.001)., Conclusions: The clinical outcomes following nCRT and surgery have improved significantly over time. This progress can be attributed to multiple factors, with the primary drivers being the refinement of nCRT protocols and the application of radical surgery., (© 2024. Society of Surgical Oncology.)

Background: In patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer who had undergone chemoradiotherapy (CRT), the limitations of radiological evaluation may necessitate surgical exploration to ascertain disease resectability. Upon intraoperative confirmation of T4b disease (sT4b), the optimal management strategy remains unclear. While some surgeons may opt against resection, others advocate for palliative esophagectomy (PE). Regrettably, the current literature does not provide a consensus on the most effective approach for managing these intricate cases., Methods: The study cohort consisted of 68 patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) who presented with sT4b disease following CRT. The perioperative outcomes and overall survival (OS) were compared between patients who underwent PE (n = 56) and those who received an open-close (OC) procedure (n = 12)., Results: Patients who underwent an OC procedure experienced a shorter hospital stay (16.5 vs. 28.8 days; p = 0.052) and showed a non-significant reduction in the rate of major complications (33.9% vs. 25%; p = 0.549) and in-hospital mortality (0% vs. 5.4%; p = 0.412) than those who received PE; however, PE was associated with a superior 2-year OS rate than OC (9.6% vs. 0%; p = 0.009). In multivariable analysis, a pretreatment clinical stage of II/III (hazard ratio [HR] 0.51, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.31-0.87; p = 0.013) and PE with retrosternal reconstruction (HR 0.38, 95% CI 0.15-0.49; p = 0.010) were independently associated with a more favorable OS., Conclusion: PE with retrosternal reconstruction may be a feasible approach for patients with ESCC exhibiting sT4b disease after CRT., (© 2024. Society of Surgical Oncology.)

Background: Recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) palsy is a serious complication of esophagectomy that affects the patient's phonation and the ability to prevent life-threatening aspiration events. The aim of this single-center, retrospective study was to investigate the clinical course of left RLN palsy and to identify the main prognostic factors for recovery., Methods: The study cohort consisted of 85 patients who had developed left RLN palsy after minimally invasive McKeown esophagectomy. Vocal cord function was assessed in all participants through laryngoscopic examinations, both in the immediate postoperative period and during follow-up. Permanent palsy was defined as no evidence of recovery after 6 months. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were applied to evaluate the associations between different variables and the outcome of palsy., Results: Twenty-two (25.8%) patients successfully recovered from left RLN palsy. On multivariable logistic regression analysis, active smoking (odds ratio [OR] 0.335, p = 0.038) and the use of thoracoscopic surgery (vs. robotic surgery; OR 0.264, p = 0.028) were identified as independent unfavorable predictors for recovery from palsy. The estimated rates of recovery derived from a logistic regression model for patients harboring two, one, or no risk factors were 13.16%, 31.15-34.75%, and 61.39%, respectively., Conclusion: Only one-quarter of patients who had developed left RLN palsy after minimally invasive McKeown esophagectomy were able to fully recover. Smoking habits and the surgical approach were identified as key determinants of recovery. Patients harboring adverse prognostic factors are potential candidates for early intervention strategies., (© 2023. Society of Surgical Oncology.)

Anterior mediastinal procedures are increasingly being performed using robot-assisted thoracic surgery (RATS) or video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). While both approaches have shown superior outcomes compared to open surgery, their comparative benefits are not as distinct. The aim of this retrospective study was to bridge this knowledge gap using a multicenter dataset. Patients who underwent elective minimally invasive surgery for anterior mediastinal disease between 2015 and 2022 were deemed eligible. The study participants were grouped based on whether a robot was used or not, and perioperative outcomes were compared. To mitigate selection bias, inverse probability of treatment weighting (ITPW) was applied using the propensity score. The final analysis included 312 patients (RATS = 120; VATS = 192). Following the application of IPTW, RATS was found to be associated with a longer operating time (215.3 versus 139.31 min, P < 0.001), fewer days with a chest tube (1.96 versus 2.61 days, P = 0.047), and a shorter hospital stay (3.03 versus 3.91 days, P = 0.041) compared to VATS. Subgroup analyses indicated that the benefit of RATS in reducing the length of hospital stay was particularly pronounced in patients with tumors larger than 6 cm (mean difference [MD] =  - 2.28 days, P = 0.033), those diagnosed with myasthenia gravis (MD =  - 3.84 days, P = 0.002), and those who underwent a trans-subxiphoid surgical approach (MD =  - 0.81 days, P = 0.04). Both VATS and RATS are safe and effective approaches for treating anterior mediastinal disease. However, RATS holds distinct advantages over VATS including shorter hospital stays and reduced chest tube drainage periods., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Currently, little is known regarding the optimal technique for the abdominal phase of RAMIE. The aim of this study was to investigate the outcome of robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) in both the abdominal and thoracic phase (full RAMIE) compared to laparoscopy during the abdominal phase (hybrid laparoscopic RAMIE)., Methods: This retrospective propensity-score matched analysis of the International Upper Gastrointestinal International Robotic Association (UGIRA) database included 807 RAMIE procedures with intrathoracic anastomosis between 2017 and 2021 from 23 centers., Results: After propensity-score matching, 296 hybrid laparoscopic RAMIE patients were compared to 296 full RAMIE patients. Both groups were equal regarding intraoperative blood loss (median 200 ml versus 197 ml, p = 0.6967), operational time (mean 430.3 min versus 417.7 min, p = 0.1032), conversion rate during abdominal phase (2.4% versus 1.7%, p = 0.560), radical resection (R0) rate (95.6% versus 96.3%, p = 0.8526) and total lymph node yield (mean 30.4 versus 29.5, p = 0.3834). The hybrid laparoscopic RAMIE group showed higher rates of anastomotic leakage (28.0% versus 16.6%, p = 0.001) and Clavien Dindo grade 3a or higher (45.3% versus 26.0%, p < 0.001). The length of stay on intensive care unit (median 3 days versus 2 days, p = 0.0005) and in-hospital (median 15 days versus 12 days, p < 0.0001) were longer for the hybrid laparoscopic RAMIE group., Conclusions: Hybrid laparoscopic RAMIE and full RAMIE were oncologically equivalent with a potential decrease of postoperative complications and shorter (intensive care) stay after full RAMIE., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: We examined the impact of the weekend effect on the survival outcomes of patients undergoing elective esophagectomy for cancer., Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of a nationwide, health administrative dataset that included all patients (n = 3235) who had undergone elective esophagectomy for cancer in Taiwanese hospitals between 2008 and 2015. Patients were categorized according to the day of surgery (weekday group: surgical procedures starting Monday through Friday, n = 3148; weekend group: surgical procedures starting on Saturday or Sunday, n = 87). Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) using the propensity score was used to account for selection bias due to baseline differences., Results: After IPTW, patients undergoing esophagectomy on weekends had a higher 90-days mortality rate compared with those undergoing surgery on a weekday (10.5% vs. 5.5%, respectively, P < 0.001). After controlling for potential confounders, weekend surgery was identified as an independent adverse predictor of 2-years, overall survival [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.38, P < 0.001]. Importantly, inferior weekend outcomes were especially evident in certain subgroups, including patients aged > 60 years (HR = 1.61, P < 0.001), as well as those with a high burden of comorbidities (HR = 1.32, P < 0.001), advanced tumor stage (HR = 1.50, P < 0.001), histological diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma (HR = 1.20, P < 0.001), and treated with minimally invasive esophagectomy (HR = 1.26, P < 0.001)., Conclusions: Elective esophagectomy for cancer during weekends has an adverse impact on short- and long-term survival., (© 2023. Society of Surgical Oncology.)

Purpose: Left upper mediastinal lymph node dissection (UMLND)-a technically demanding step of McKeown esophagectomy-is frequently complicated by recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) palsy. Under the hypothesis that robotic esophagectomy (RE) could increase the safety and feasibility of UMLND, we retrospectively investigated the degree to which a pre-existing experience in video-assisted thoracoscopic esophagectomy (VATE) may affect the learning curves of this critical part of RE., Methods: Surgeon A had previously performed > 150 VATE procedures before transitioning to RE. While surgeon B had previously assisted to 50 RE, his pre-existing VATE experience consisted of less than five procedures. A total of 103 and 76 McKeown RE procedures were performed by surgeons A and B, respectively. The learning curve of left UMLND for each surgeon was examined using the cumulative sum method., Results: The inflection point of RLN palsy for surgeon A occurred at patient 31. While the nerve palsy rate decreased from 32.3 to 4.2% (p < 0.001), the number of nodes harvested during left UMLND did not appreciably change. Surgeon B showed a bimodal learning curve for RLN palsy with primary and secondary inflection points at patients 15 and 49, respectively. The RLN palsy rate initially decreased from 66.7% (patients 1-15) to 14.7% (patients 16-49), followed by an additional decline to 3.7% (patients 50-76). However, the number of nodes harvested during left UMLND showed a downtrend which was paralleled by decreasing rates of RLN palsy. These results indicate that surgeon B has not yet reached an ideal balance between an extensive UMLND and nerve protection., Conclusion: The pre-existing VATE experience seems to affect the learning curves of left UMLND during RE., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Innovations in surgical instruments have made single-port surgery more widely accepted and lead to a reduced demand for surgical assistants. As COVID-19 has ravaged the world, maintaining minimum medical staffing requirements and proper social distancing have become major topics of interest. We sought to evaluate the feasibility of applying the unisurgeon approach in single-port video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery aided by a robotic camera holder., Methods: Operative time, blood loss, setup time, postoperative hospital stays, and the number of participating surgeons in single-port video-assisted thoracoscopic lung resections were gathered for investigation after the introduction of the ENDOFIX exo robotic endoscope holder system. In this cohort, we collected 213 patients who underwent single port video thoracoscope surgery, including 57 patients underwent robotic endoscope arm assisted surgery and case-matched 52 patients in the robotic arm-assisted group with patients in the human-assisted group through propensity score-matched analysis., Results: In wedge resection, a single surgeon was able to completely operate on all lobes of target lesions. However, for anatomical resections, namely segmentectomy, the success rate was 95%, and for lobectomy, the success rate was only 64%. No significant differences between setup times, blood loss, or operative times between the two groups were observed., Conclusions: When an experienced uniport surgeon is assisted by a robotic endoscope holder, wedge resection is the most suitable procedure to be performed through unisurgeon single-port video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery without increasing setup time, operative time, or short-term complications. Verification of the technique's applicability for use in anatomic resections requires further investigation., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Although neoadjuvant therapy followed by surgery (NT) is the standard of care for esophageal cancer in Western countries, upfront surgery (US) followed by adjuvant therapy (when indicated) still is commonly used in Asia to minimize overtreatment. This study investigated the cost-effectiveness of NT versus US for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC)., Methods: Patients with a diagnosis of ESCC between 2010 and 2015 were divided into NT or US according to the intention to treat. Two propensity score-matched groups of patients with clinical stage 2 (135 pairs) or stage 3 (194 pairs) disease were identified and compared in terms of overall survival (OS) and direct costs incurred within 3 years after diagnosis., Results: The esophagectomy rates after NT were 82% for stage 2 and 88% for stage 3 disease. Compared with US, surgery after NT was associated with higher R0 resection rates, a lower number of dissected lymph nodes, and similar postoperative mortality. On an intention-to-treat analysis, stage 3 patients who received NT had a significantly better 3-year OS rate (45%) than those treated with US (37%) (p = 0.029) without significant cost increases (p = 0.89). However, NT for clinical stage 2 disease neither increased costs nor improved 3-year OS rates (47% vs 47%; p = 0.88). At a willingness-to-pay level of US$50,000 per life-year, the probability of NT being cost-effective was 92% for stage 3 versus 59% for stage 2 ESCC., Conclusion: Because of its higher cost-effectiveness, NT is preferable to US for patients with clinical stage 3 ESCC, but US remains a viable option for stage 2 disease., (© 2022. Society of Surgical Oncology.)

Background: We sought to evaluate the safety and oncological efficacy of bilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) lymph-node dissection (LND) in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) who had undergone neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT)., Methods: We retrospectively examined the records of ESCC patients who were judged to be ycN-RLN(-) following nCRT. Patients were divided into two groups according to the extent of LND [standard two-field LND (STL group) versus total two-field LND (TTL group)]. Only lower mediastinal and upper abdominal lymph nodes were removed in the STL group. In addition to the standard procedure, patients in the TTL group underwent resection of upper mediastinal lymph nodes located along the bilateral RLN. Using propensity score matching, 29 pairs were identified and compared with regard to perioperative complications, lymph-node metastases rates, overall survival (OS), and disease-specific survival (DSS)., Results: No significant intergroup differences were identified in terms of in-hospital mortality and morbidity. Metastases to the RLN lymph nodes were identified in 20.7% (6/29) of TTL patients, being the only site of lymph-node metastases in three of them. TTL was associated with lower upper mediastinal lymph-node recurrence rate (6.5%) compared with STL (21.5%, p = 0.134), although the overall recurrence rate was similar (STL, 44.8% versus TTL, 46.4%). No significant intergroup differences were also evident with regard to 3-year DSS and OS rates., Conclusions: RLN LND can be safely performed in ESCC patients who had undergone nCRT, ultimately resulting in an improved local control, and should be practiced as part of the surgical routine.

Background: We sought to describe the feasibility and safety of a dual-marker technique-based on a combination of near-infrared (NIR) marking and microcoil localization-before image-guided video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (iVATS) of small and/or deep pulmonary lesions in a hybrid operating room (HOR)., Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of consecutive patients who underwent iVATS resection in a HOR using the proposed dual-marker localization technique. Patients were initially imaged with cone-beam CT, and the needle trajectory was subsequently planned with the Syngo iGuide Needle Guidance software. Using a coaxial needle technique, a microcoil was initially deployed either in the immediate proximity or within the lesion of interest followed by injection of diluted indocyanine green (ICG; quantity: 0.3-0.5 mL; dye concentration: 0.125 mg/mL) at the pleural surface. A NIR thoracoscopic camera and a C-arm portable fluoroscopic system were used to guide the subsequent resection., Results: A total of 11 patients were examined. The median lesion size was 6 mm, with a median distance from the pleural surface of 4 mm. Three nodules were solid, whereas the remaining eight were GGOs. All lesions were identifiable on intraoperative cone-beam CT images. The median time required for localization was 19 min. No conversion to thoracotomy or a multi-port approach was required, and there were no clinically significant adverse events after ICG injection or microcoil placement., Conclusions: Our study indicates that iVATS with a dual-marking approach (NIR marking and microcoil localization) is safe and useful to localize difficult-to-identify pulmonary nodules.

Background: Our objective is to report on two centers' experience of intra-operative management of major vascular injury during single-port video-assisted thoracoscopic (SPVATS) anatomic resections, including bleeding control techniques, incidence, results, and risk factor analysis., Methods: Consecutive patients (n = 442) who received SPVATS anatomic lung resections in two centers were enrolled. The different clinical parameters studied included age, previous thoracic surgery, obesity (BMI > 30), tumor location, neoadjuvant therapy, and pleural symphysis. In addition, peri-operative outcomes were compared between the groups, with or without vessel injury., Results: There were no intra-operative deaths in our study. Overall major bleeding incidence was 4.5%, whereby 70% of major bleeding episodes could be managed with SPVATS techniques. In order to determine risk factors possibly related to intra-operative bleeding, we used case control matching to homogenize our study population. After case control matching, pleural symphysis was significantly related in the univariate (p = 0.005, Odds ratio 4.415, 95% CI 1.424-13.685) and multivariate analysis (p = 0.006, Odds ratio 4.926, 95% CI 1.577-15.384). Operative time (p < 0.001), blood loss (p < 0.001), and post-operative hospital stay (p = 0.012) were longer in patients with major vascular injury. There were no differences in 30-day mortality and 90-day morbidity., Conclusions: In summary, major intra-operative bleeding episodes during SPVATS anatomic lung resections are acceptable and most such bleeding episodes can be safely managed with SPVATS techniques.

Background: Localization of non-visible, non-palpable small pulmonary nodules during video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) remains challenging. We sought to investigate the feasibility and safety of image-guided video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (iVATS) with near-infrared (NIR) marking in a hybrid operating room (OR)., Methods: Both localization and surgery were performed by a single team of thoracic surgeons. Diluted indocyanine green (ICG; quantity: 0.3-0.5 mL; dye concentration: 0.125 mg/mL) was injected percutaneously to pinpoint the tumor's location under cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) guidance using a laser-guided navigation system. Real-time fluorescence images were intraoperatively obtained using a NIR thoracoscopic camera to guide subsequent resection., Results: Between March and December 2017, 26 patients underwent NIR marking of small pulmonary nodules for iVATS. The median tumor size was 7 mm (interquartile range [IQR] 5.3-10.8 mm), whereas their median distance from the pleural surface was 5 mm (IQR 0.3-10.5 mm). Seven nodules (35%) were solid, whereas 17 (65%) were ground-glass opacities. All lesions were identifiable on intraoperative CBCT. The median time required for NIR localization was 13 min. An NIR(+) "tattoo" was identified in all cases, and no intraoperative conversion to thoracotomy occurred. The final pathological diagnoses were primary lung cancer (n = 11), metastatic cancer (n = 6), and benign lung tumor (n = 9). Adverse events were not observed, and the median length of post-operative stay was 4 days (IQR 3-4 days)., Conclusions: Our data show that iVATS with NIR marking is useful, has no adverse effects, and can successfully localize difficult-to-identify small pulmonary nodules.

Background: Pulmonary segmentectomy with radical lymphadenopathy has been considered effective to manage small primary lung cancers [1, 2]. This procedure provides the advantages of minimal invasive surgery and is reported sufficient for safe margin. However, segmentectomy is more difficult to be performed than lobectomy because intersegmental plane cannot be detected easily. Several methods have been reported for identifying the actual intersegmental plane [3-7], but the sensitivity of these methods is limited to the lung conditions like patients with emphysematous lung and needed skilled surgeon to perform. We demonstrated the technique of visualizing the intersegmental plane via fluorescence navigated with indocyanine green (ICG) injection intravenously during robotic S6 segmentectomy., Methods: This video presents a case that 70-year-old male who has past history of rectal cancer status post-LAR in 1991, HCC status post-RFA, and hepatitis C was found a lung nodule over superior segment of left lower lobe during regular examination. The nodule was considered metastatic tumor preoperatively. The segmental pulmonary artery and pulmonary bronchus to superior segment of left lower lobe were ligated firstly, and the intersegmental plane was seen clearly after ICG injection intravenously under fluorescence navigated. Intersegmental plane was marked by electrocautery, and then, the target segment was resected by endostapler., Results: Patient tolerated the procedure well. Chest tube was removed by postoperative day 3, and he was discharged smoothly by postoperative day 5. There were no complications. Postoperative chest X-ray revealed good lung expansion. Not as preoperative expectation, the final pathology was consistent with caseating granulomatous inflammation., Conclusion: It is difficult to identify intersegmental plane during segmentectomy. ICG fluorescence-navigated segmentectomy provides immediate visualization of the intersegmental plane and makes the procedure easy and fast.

Introduction: Safe pulmonary vessel sealing device plays a crucial role in anatomic lung resection. In 2014, we reported high rates of massive bleeding complications during transumbilical lobectomy in a canine model due to difficulty in managing the pulmonary vessel with an endostapler. In this animal survival series, we aimed to evaluate the outcome of pulmonary vessel sealing with an electrocautery device to simplify the transumbilical thoracic surgery., Methods: Under general anesthesia, a 3-cm longitudinal incision was made over the umbilicus. Under video guidance, a bronchoscope was inserted through the incision for exploration. The diaphragmatic wound was created with an electrocautery knife and used as the entrance into the thoracic cavity. Using the transumbilical technique, anatomic lobectomy was performed with electrosurgical devices and endoscopic vascular staplers in 15 canines., Results: Transumbilical endoscopic anatomic lobectomy was successfully completed in 12 of the 15 animals. Intraoperative bleeding developed in three animals during pulmonary hilum dissection, where one animal was killed due to hemodynamic instability and the other two animals required thoracotomy to complete the operation. There were five delayed bleeding and surgical mortality cases caused by inadequate vessel sealing by electrosurgical devices. Postmortem examination confirmed correct transumbilical lobectomy in the twelve animals that survived the operations., Conclusion: Transumbilical anatomic lobectomy is technically feasible in a canine model; however, the electrosurgical devices were not effective in sealing the pulmonary vessel in the current canine model.

Background: Endoscopic biopsy examinations after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) are of limited value in patients with esophageal cancer due to the high rates of false negative (FN) findings. We sought to investigate the anatomical locations of residual tumors in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients with FN endoscopic biopsies with the ultimate goal of improving their clinical management., Methods: ESCC patients with residual cancers after nCRT which were not identified by preoperative endoscopic biopsy were deemed eligible. All of the surgical specimens were re-reviewed with a special focus on (1) distribution of residual cancer in each esophageal layer; (2) tumor regression grade (TRG); and (3) shortest distance between the lumen and the residual tumor., Results: Among the 49 ESCC patients with FN biopsy results, a strong 'layer-dependent' tumor regression was observed. There was a preferential clearing of esophageal cancer cells located in the adventitia, followed by muscle and the submucosal (SM) and mucosal (M) layers (p < 0.001). Residual malignancies located in the muscle layer or the adventitia without simultaneous involvement of the M/SM layers were rare (n = 3; 6.1 %). TRG following nCRT did not affect the rate of M/SM involvement (p = 0.55) but was inversely associated with the distance between the lumen and residual cancer (mean distance in patients with TRG of 2, 3, and 4 was 1.1, 0.82, and 0.37 mm, respectively; p = 0.041)., Conclusion: Most ESCC patients who show FN endoscopic biopsies following nCRT still have detectable lesions in the M/SM layers. Aggressive biopsy protocols may potentially improve detection rates.

Purpose: The use of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) in patients with thymoma remains controversial. We sought to evaluate the perioperative and oncological outcomes after VATS resection for stage I and II thymoma and to compare the outcomes with those obtained after median sternotomy (MST)., Methods: Between 1991 and 2007, a total of 140 patients with stage I and II thymoma underwent surgery at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Of them, 58 underwent MST, 61 VATS, and 21 thoracotomy. Using a propensity score based on four variables (myasthenia gravis, tumor size on CT images, age, and Masaoka stage), 48 VATS-treated patients were matched to 48 patients who received MST. Outcomes compared included perioperative complications, length of stay, tumor recurrence, and survival., Results: No operative deaths occurred in this study. VATS was associated with fewer intraoperative blood loss, and more patients in the VATS group were extubated in the operating room after surgery compared with the MST group (37.5 vs. 12.5 %, respectively, P = 0.005). The mean length of stay was shorter in the VATS group than in the MST group (5.8 vs. 7 days, respectively; P = 0.008). After a median follow-up of 53 months, five patients developed recurrent tumors (four pleural and one pericardial). No statistically significant differences were found in the 5-year survival rates between the two study groups., Conclusions: VATS appears feasible for patients with stage I and II thymoma and is associated with better perioperative outcomes than MST. The oncological outcomes are also similar.

Objective: To investigate the prognostic significance of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT)., Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the charts of 416 consecutive patients with ESCC who underwent surgical resection following nCRT at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital between 1998 and 2008. After exclusion of patients with non-R0 resection or showing no residual tumor (ypT0Nx), the histological tumor sections of 231 patients were reviewed for LVI. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to identify the independent predictors of overall survival (OS)., Results: LVI was observed in 85 patients (36.8 %). The presence of LVI was related to close circumferential resection margins (CRMs), a greater depth of invasion, poor tumor differentiation, and an increased occurrence of lymph node metastases (LNM). The 5 year OS was significantly lower (10 %) in patients with LVI than in those without (31 %; p < 0.001). By multivariate Cox regression analyses, LVI (hazard ratio [HR] 1.5; p = 0.002) and LNM (HR 1.6; p = 0.007) were identified as independent adverse prognostic factors for OS. The 5 year OS rates according to the number of risk factors present were 35, 21, 20, and 5 for LVI(-)LNM(-), LVI(+)LNM(-), LVI(-)LNM(+), and LVI(+)LNM(+) patients, respectively (p < 0.001)., Conclusions: The presence of LVI is independently associated with shorter OS in ESCC patients receiving nCRT. Links between LVI and LNM may provide new clues for the prognostic stratification of esophageal cancer.

Background: Although esophagectomy traditionally is recommended to perform within 8 weeks after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT), data from neoadjuvantly treated rectal cancer patients demonstrate that delayed surgery ([8 weeks) can maximize the effect of CRT. Despite these promising data, investigators are concerned that delayed surgery may lead to tumor repopulation. We report the impact of delayed surgery in patients with esophageal cancer who were treated with nCRT., Methods: We retrospectively studied 276 esophageal cancer patients treated with nCRT and surgery between 2002 and 2008. We compared perioperative complication, rate of pathological complete response (pCR), distribution of tumor regression grade (TRG), and overall survival (OS) in patients who underwent surgery within 8 weeks (group A) and after 8 weeks (group B) after nCRT., Results: There were 138 patients in each group with similar pre/post-nCRT characteristics. Delayed surgery did not result in lower surgical risk or higher pCR rate. Survival outcome also did not improve following a longer surgery interval (5-year OS: group A vs. group B, 29 vs. 23 %; P = 0.3). On the contrary, a subgroup analysis showed that delayed surgery might be hazardous, especially in patients who demonstrate a good response after nCRT. The amount of residual cancer, as measured by TRG, increased significantly after a longer surgical interval (P = 0.024). Survival also decreased after a longer surgical interval (5-year OS B8 vs. [8 weeks, 50 vs. 35 %; P = 0.038)., Conclusions: After nCRT, esophagectomy should be performed within 8 weeks, especially in patients with good response.

Background: Two randomized trials have shown that in patients with good response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT), a nonoperative approach (additional CRT) had equal survival to scheduled esophagectomy. However, controversy exists because of the high locoregional recurrence (LR) following a nonoperative approach. Endoscopic complete response (e-CR) determined by endoscopic finding is a good criterion for predicting local control after definitive CRT. We evaluated whether e-CR could also be used to select patients for nonoperative treatment after nCRT., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) patients with e-CR after nCRT between 1999 and 2006. Patients were divided into two groups by the type of treatment given after e-CR (group A, scheduled esophagectomy; group B, no scheduled surgery and continued CRT)., Results: There were 71 and 79 patients in groups A and B, respectively with similar pre/post-nCRT characteristics. Despite similarity in survival and recurrence between groups, the recurrence site differed significantly. LR occurred more frequently in group B, whereas systemic recurrence was the predominant failure pattern in group A (P<.001). With use of multivariate analysis on group B, we determined that pretreatment depth of tumor invasion≥T3 [odds ratio (OR), 11.19; 95% CI, 1.4-89; unfavorable, P=.023] and tumor length≥6 cm (OR, 3.069; 95% CI, 1.17-8.1; unfavorable, P=.023) were predictors for LR. Patients with initial clinical T2 and <6 cm tumor had comparable LR (5%) to the surgery group; these patients were candidates for nonoperative treatment after nCRT., Conclusion: In esophageal SCC patients who achieved e-CR after nCRT, pretreatment tumor depth and length were good indicators to select candidates for nonoperative treatment.

Background: Extensive lymph node dissection (LND) is beneficial in primarily resected esophageal cancer patients. Such benefit was believed to be seen in neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT)-treated patients, but evidence was inconsistent. We hypothesized that CRT might offset the benefit of LND in certain subgroup of patients, especially in major responders., Methods: The clinical pathological data and survival of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients who received curative resection after CRT between 1996 and 2007 were analyzed. On the basis of the mean LND number of the cohort, patients were divided into two groups: group 1, lower LND, and group 2, higher LND., Results: The cohort comprised 303 patients (295 men and 8 women) with a mean age of 55.4 years. There were 179 patients in group 1 and 124 patients in group 2. One hundred one patients had pathological complete response (pCR). There were more pCR in group 1 (38 vs. 26.6%, P = 0.039) and more lymph node positive cases in group 2 (16 vs. 27.4%, P = 0.018). Extent of LND had no survival difference in the entire cohort (overall survival 32 vs. 38%, P = 0.31). With the stratification analysis according to tumor response, inadequate LND exhibited negative impact in patients who did not experience pCR (P = 0.027). Without adequate LND, the survival of ypTxN0 was equally poor as ypN-positive cases (overall survival 15 vs. 16%, P = 0.791). In the pCR group, the extent of LND had an impact on survival., Conclusions: The effect of LND was influenced by tumor response after CRT. There is a strong survival benefit for extensive LND after CRT in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, especially in non-pCR patients.

Background: Close circumferential resection margin (CRM) is an established predictor for locoregional recurrence (LR) in rectal cancer but remains controversial in esophageal malignancy. As yet, little is known about the significance of CRM after chemoradiotherapy (CRT), especially in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). This study investigated the relationship between CRM distance and recurrence after neoadjuvant CRT in esophageal SCC patients., Methods: Between 1997 and 2005, esophageal SCC patients who underwent surgery after neoadjuvant CRT and with pathology stage T3N0M0 and T3N1M0 (metastatic lymph nodes <2) were selected. CRM distance was reassessed and divided into three groups (group 1: CRM >1 mm, group 2: uninvolved CRM but <1 mm, group 3: CRM involved)., Results: The cohort comprised 145 male and 6 female patients with mean age of 57 years. There were 74, 51, and 26 patients in group 1, 2, and 3, respectively. With median follow-up period of 50 months, LR developed in 30.5% of patients. Both group 2 and group 3 had significantly higher LR than group 1 (37 and 42% vs. 21%, P < 0.05). Meanwhile, mean time from operation to recurrence was also significantly shorter in group 2 and group 3 than in group 1 (267 and 269 days versus 402 days, P < 0.05). Five-year disease-specific survival (DSS) was highest in group 1 (40%). Despite the similarity in LR, 5-year DSS significantly differed between group 2 and group 3 (22 vs. 7%, P < 0.05). The higher rate of distant recurrence (DR) and concomitant LR + DR in group 3 accounted for the survival difference., Conclusion: In ypT3 esophageal SCC patients, CRM distance provides useful information for risk stratification in cancer recurrence and survival.