Safety and Feasibility of Robot-Assisted Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy (RAMIE) with Three-Field Lymphadenectomy and Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy in Patients with Resectable Esophageal Cancer and Cervical Lymph Node Metastasis.

BACKGROUND: In the West, patients with cervical lymph node metastasis of resectable esophageal cancer at diagnosis are generally precluded from curative treatment. This study prospectively explored the safety and feasibility of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) with three-field lymphadenectomy for these patients. METHODS: Between 2015 and 2021, patients with resectable thoracic esophageal cancer and cervical lymph node metastasis were recruited nationwide in the Netherlands. Patients without interval metastasis following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and good physical condition underwent RAMIE with bilateral three-field lymphadenectomy. Safety was predefined as ≤50% Clavien-Dindo grade ≥3b postoperative complications. RESULTS: Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy was administered to 29 patients (19 (66%) adenocarcinoma and 10 (34%) squamous cell carcinoma). After restaging, nine (31%) patients were excluded (interval metastasis, clinical deterioration, or withdrawn consent). RAMIE was performed in 20 patients (R0-rate 95%). A median of 42 [range 21-71] lymph nodes were resected of which 13 [range 2-35] were cervical. Only 1 (5%) patient had an unexpected contralateral cervical lymph node metastasis. Complications grade ≥3b occurred in 50%. Most frequent complications of any grade were recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (45%) and pneumonia (40%). Overall survival at 1 year was 85% and quality of life at 6 months was comparable to esophageal cancer patients treated with curative intent. CONCLUSIONS: RAMIE with three-field lymphadenectomy following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy for patients with resectable esophageal cancer presenting with cervical lymph node metastasis is feasible in a Western population. Because contralateral cervical metastasis is rare, a unilateral neck dissection would suffice in the majority of cases. CLINICAL TRIAL: gov Identifier: NCT02426879. Dutch trial register Identifier: NTR 4552.

Defining pneumonia after esophagectomy for cancer: validation of the Uniform Pneumonia Score in a high volume center in North America.

Surgery is a central component of multimodality therapy for esophageal and gastroesophageal junction cancer. Pneumonia is a common sequela of esophagectomy, leading to an increase in intensive care unit stay, hospital stay, readmission rates, and postoperative mortality. Developing strategies to reduce pneumonia after esophagectomy is hampered by the absence of a standardized methodology for defining pneumonia. This study aims to validate the Uniform Pneumonia Score (UPS) in a high volume center in the USA. The UPS was developed to define pneumonia after esophagectomy for cancer and is based on the assessment of temperature (°C), leukocyte count (×109/L), and pulmonary radiography. The UPS has been validated utilizing a prospective, Institutional Review Board approved database of esophageal cancer patients treated in a high volume esophagectomy center in the USA between 2010 and 2015. One hundred ninety-three consecutive patients were included and 21 (10.9%) were treated for pneumonia. The UPS was able to predict treatment for suspected pneumonia with a good sensitivity (85.7%, confidence interval (CI): 63.7%-96.7%), specificity (97.1%, CI: 93.4%-99.1%), positive predictive value (78.3%, CI: 59.9%-89.7%), and negative predictive value (98.2%, CI: 95.1%-99.4%). The diagnostic accuracy was 95.9%, CI: 92.0%-98.2%. The UPS demonstrated to be a reliable scoring system to define pneumonia after esophagectomy for cancer. Global application of this model will standardize the definition of pneumonia after esophagectomy. This will improve outcome reporting and comparisons of complications between individual institutions, clinical trials, and national audits.

The long-term effects of early oral feeding following minimal invasive esophagectomy.

A nil-by-mouth regime with enteral nutrition via an artificial route is frequently applied following esophagectomy. However, early initiation of oral feeding could potentially improve recovery and has shown to be beneficial in many types of abdominal surgery. Although short-term nutritional safety of oral intake after an esophagectomy has been documented, long-term effects of this feeding regimen are unknown. In this cohort study, data from patients undergoing minimal invasive Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy between 04-2012 and 09-2015 in three centers in Netherlands were collected. Patients in the oral feeding group were retrieved from a previous prospective study and compared with a cohort of patients with early enteral jejunostomy feeding but delayed oral intake. Body mass index (BMI) measurements, complications, and nutritional re-interventions (re- or start of artificial feeding, start of total parenteral nutrition) were gathered over the course of one year after surgery. One year after surgery the median BMI was 22.8 kg/m2 and weight loss was 7.0 kg (9.5%) in 114 patients. Patients in the early oral feeding group lost more weight during the first postoperative month (P = 0.004). However, in the months thereafter this difference was not observed anymore. In the early oral feeding group, 28 patients (56%) required a nutritional re-intervention, compared to 46 patients (72%) in the delayed oral feeding group (P = 0.078). During admission, more re-interventions were performed in the delayed oral feeding group (17 vs. 46 patients P < 0.001). Esophagectomy reduces BMI in the first year after surgery regardless of the feeding regimen. Direct start of oral intake following esophagectomy has no impact on early nutritional re-interventions and long-term weight loss.

The peri-esophageal connective tissue layers and related compartments: visualization by histology and magnetic resonance imaging.

An organized layer of connective tissue coursing from aorta to esophagus was recently discovered in the mediastinum. The relations with other peri-esophageal fascias have not been described and it is unclear whether this layer can be visualized by non-invasive imaging. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive description of the peri-esophageal fascias and determine whether the connective tissue layer between aorta and esophagus can be visualized by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). First, T2-weighted MRI scanning of the thoracic region of a human cadaver was performed, followed by histological examination of transverse sections of the peri-esophageal tissue between the thyroid gland and the diaphragm. Secondly, pretreatment motion-triggered MRI scans were prospectively obtained from 34 patients with esophageal cancer and independently assessed by two radiologists for the presence and location of the connective tissue layer coursing from aorta to esophagus. A layer of connective tissue coursing from the anterior aspect of the descending aorta to the left lateral aspect of the esophagus, with a thin extension coursing to the right pleural reflection, was visualized ex vivo in the cadaver on MR images, macroscopic tissue sections, and after histologic staining, as well as on in vivo MR images. The layer connecting esophagus and aorta was named 'aorto-esophageal ligament' and the layer connecting aorta to the right pleural reflection 'aorto-pleural ligament'. These connective tissue layers divides the posterior mediastinum in an anterior compartment containing the esophagus, (carinal) lymph nodes and vagus nerve, and a posterior compartment, containing the azygos vein, thoracic duct and occasionally lymph nodes. The anterior compartment was named 'peri-esophageal compartment' and the posterior compartment 'para-aortic compartment'. The connective tissue layers superior to the aortic arch and at the diaphragm corresponded with the currently available anatomic descriptions. This study confirms the existence of the previously described connective tissue layer coursing from aorta to esophagus, challenging the long-standing paradigm that no such structure exists. A comprehensive, detailed description of the peri-esophageal fascias is provided and, furthermore, it is shown that the connective tissue layer coursing from aorta to esophagus can be visualized in vivo by MRI.

Laparoscopic gastrectomy in Western European patients with advanced gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: The advantage of laparoscopic gastrectomy compared to open gastrectomy has been established in Asian patient series with early gastric cancer. However, its feasibility in Western European patients with locally advanced gastric cancer is unknown. METHODS: Between 2006 and 2014 70 consecutive patients with advanced gastric cancer underwent laparoscopic gastrectomy with D2 lymph node dissection. A Billroth II reconstruction was performed after distal gastrectomy. In case of total gastrectomy a jejunal J-pouch reconstruction was performed. RESULTS: Total gastrectomy was performed in 56 patients and distal gastrectomy in 14 patients. Perioperative chemotherapy was administered in 45/70 (64%) patients. A radical resection was achieved in 63/70 (90%). The median number of dissected lymph nodes was 17 (2-62). The median intraoperative blood loss was 305 (30-2700) milliliters. The median postoperative hospital stay was 11 (5-91) days. The 30-day mortality was 4.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic gastrectomy can be performed in Western European patients with advanced gastric cancer and meets the oncologic standard with low intraoperative blood loss and short hospital stay.

Reduced local immune response with continuous positive airway pressure during one-lung ventilation for oesophagectomy.

BACKGROUND: Transthoracic oesophagectomy requires prolonged one-lung ventilation causing systemic and local inflammatory responses. Application of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) to the collapsed lung potentially reduces pulmonary damage, hypoxia, and consequent inflammation. This randomized controlled trial studied the influence of CPAP applied to the collapsed right lung during thoracoscopic oesophagectomy on local and systemic inflammatory response. METHODS: Broncho-alveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from the right collapsed and left ventilated lung and serum samples were obtained during surgery from 30 patients undergoing thoracolaparoscopic oesophagectomy for cancer who were randomized for one-lung ventilation with or without CPAP applied to the collapsed right lung. Concentrations of cytokines and chemokines, in BALF and serum, were determined with Luminex. RESULTS: Patients from the control (no CPAP) group had significantly increased concentrations of interleukin (IL)-1α, IL-1ß, IL-10, tumour necrosis factor-alpha, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1α, pulmonary and activation-regulated chemokine (PARC), and IL-8 in the collapsed (right) lung when compared with patients from the CPAP group (P<0.05). The ventilated (left) lung of the control group showed increased concentrations of monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 and MIP-1α (P<0.05). Serum concentrations of cytokines and chemokines increased during surgery, but did not differ between the control and CPAP groups. CONCLUSIONS: A significantly lower local immune response was observed during one-lung ventilation when CPAP was applied to the collapsed lung. The findings suggest a beneficial effect of CPAP on the collapsed lung during oesophagectomy with one-lung ventilation.