Modified operation to treat types II and III adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction.

Background/aims: To study the effects of a gastric tube anastomosis in the intraperitoneal operation for types II and III adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG).
Methodology: Thirty-one patients with types II and III AEG were selected for proximal gastrectomy. After the proximal gastrectomy by the abdominal approach, the gastric remnant was cut into a tubular shape. The esophagus was then anastomosed to the gastric tube.
Results: The surgical technique was performed on all 31 patients with types II or III AEG. The operation time was 279.52±34.99min, average surgery blood loss was 209.68±185.82mL, the number of hospital postoperative days was 10.48±2.01. All cases were followed-up for 2-12 months. One (3.2%) patient had postoperative anastomotic bleeding and another case had intractable hiccups. Only 3 (9.7%) patients felt heartburn after the operation. One (3.2%) patient was found to be suffering from reflux esophagitis through endoscopic examination. In addition, 1 (3.4%) patient had tumor recurrence.
Conclusions: Using gastric tubes is a safe surgical technique and is followed by only a small number of complications at the early postoperative stage.