No abstract

Pre-operative IMT is feasible in patients with oesophageal carcinoma and significantly improves respiratory muscle function. This, however, did not result in a reduction of post-operative pneumonia in patients undergoing oesophagectomy.

The implementation of an ERAS program in esophageal surgery was feasible and resulted in a small but significant reduction in overall hospital stay, whereas overall morbidity was not affected.

Background Although self‐expandable metal stent (SEMS) placement as bridge to surgery (BTS) in patients with left‐sided obstructing colonic cancer has shown promising short‐term results, it is used infrequently owing to uncertainty about its oncological safety. This population study compared long‐term oncological outcomes between emergency resection and SEMS placement as BTS. Methods Through a national collaborative research project, long‐term outcome data were collected for all patients who underwent resection for left‐sided obstructing colonic cancer between 2009 and 2016 in 75 Dutch hospitals. Patients were identified from the Dutch Colorectal Audit database. SEMS as BTS was compared with emergency resection in the curative setting after 1 : 2 propensity score matching. Results Some 222 patients who had a stent placed were matched to 444 who underwent emergency resection. The overall SEMS‐related perforation rate was 7·7 per cent (17 of 222). Three‐year locoregional recurrence rates after SEMS insertion and emergency resection were 11·4 and 13·6 per cent (P = 0·457), disease‐free survival rates were 58·8 and 52·6 per cent (P = 0·175), and overall survival rates were 74·0 and 68·3 per cent (P = 0·231), respectively. SEMS placement resulted in significantly fewer permanent stomas (23·9 versus 45·3 per cent; P < 0·001), especially in elderly patients (29·0 versus 57·9 per cent; P < 0·001). For patients in the SEMS group with or without perforation, 3‐year locoregional recurrence rates were 18 and 11·0 per cent (P = 0·432), disease‐free survival rates were 49 and 59·6 per cent (P = 0·717), and overall survival rates 61 and 75·1 per cent (P = 0·529), respectively. Conclusion Overall, SEMS as BTS seems an oncologically safe alternative to emergency resection with fewer permanent stomas. Nevertheless, the risk of SEMS‐related perforation, as well as permanent stoma, might influence shared decision‐making for individual patients.

BackgroundThe body mass index (BMI) in the general population has increased over the past decades. A high BMI is a known risk factor for the development of esophageal adenocarcinoma. Several studies on the influence of a high BMI on the postoperative course and survival after esophagectomy have shown contradictory results. The aim of the present study was to determine the influence of a high BMI on postoperative complications and survival among a large cohort of esophageal cancer patients.MethodsPatients who underwent an esophagectomy between 1993 and 2010 were divided into three groups according to their BMI: normal weight (<25 kg/m2), overweight (25–30 kg/m2) or obese (≥30 kg/m2). Severity of complications was scored according to the Dindo classification, which was divided into three categories: no complications, minor to moderate complications, and severe complications. Long-term survival was determined according to the Kaplan–Meier method.ResultsA total of 736 esophagectomy patients were divided into three groups: normal weight (n = 352), overweight (n = 308), and obese (n = 72). Complications rates were similar for all groups (65–72%, P = 0.241). The incidence of anastomotic leakage was higher among obese patients compared to the other groups (20% vs. 10–12% respectively, P = 0.019), but there was no significant difference between the three groups regarding the severity of complications according to the Dindo classification (P = 0.660) or in 5-year survival rates (P = 0.517).ConclusionsA high BMI is not associated with an increased incidence or severity of complications after esophagectomy; however, anastomotic leakage occurred more frequently in obese patients. Five-year survival rates were not influenced by the preoperative BMI. A high BMI is therefore ought not be an exclusion criterion for esophagectomy.

The implementation of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) in esophageal cancer (EC) patients has led to improved survival rates. Worldwide, different CRT regimens are applied. It is unknown how these regimens relate to each other regarding efficacy. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the preferred regimen regarding toxicity of, response to CRT, and long-term survival after esophagectomy in EC patients. EC patients in two centers who underwent CRT with different regimens prior to surgery were included in this study. CRT consisted of 50.4Gy combined with two cycles of cisplatin and 5-FU(center A), or 41.4Gy combined with five cycles of carboplatin and paclitaxel (center B). Toxicity, response to therapy and long-term survival were compared between groups. One hundred sisty-five patients were included. Forty-one percent of patients in center A developed ≥1 toxicity ≥ grade 3 versus 25% in center B (P = 0.025). CRT with a cisplatin-based regimen was an independent predictor for development of toxicity ≥ grade 3 (P = 0.043). There were no differences in response between both regimens (P = 0.904). Three-year survival was 61% (A) versus 57% (B) (P = 0.725). The carboplatin/paclitaxel/41.4Gy regimen causes less toxicity compared to the cisplatin/5-FU/50.4Gy regimen with nonsignificant differences in response rates and long-term survival; therefore our results support this regimen to be the preferred regimen for EC patients.

Survival after recurrent EC in patients who undergo FU without routine imaging after esophagectomy is approximately 3 months and has not improved over the past 18 years.

ObjectiveTo investigate the reproducibility of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) in assessing tumor response early in the course of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in patients with operable esophageal cancer.MethodsEleven male patients (mean age 54.8 years) with newly diagnosed esophageal cancer underwent DW-MRI before and 10 days after start of chemoradiotherapy. Reproducibility of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements by manual (freehand) and semi-automated volumetric methods was assessed.ResultsInterobserver reproducibility for the assessment of mean tumor ADC by the manual measurement method was good, with an ICC of 0.69 (95% CI, 0.36 to 0.85; P = 0.001). Interobserver reproducibility for the assessment of mean tumor ADC by the semi-automated volumetric measurement method was very good, with an ICC of 0.96 (95% CI, 0.91 to 0.98; P<0.001).ConclusionSemi-automated volumetric ADC measurements have higher reproducibility than manual ADC measurements in assessing tumor response to chemoradiotherapy in patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma.