Abstract
Aim
The aim of this study was to gain insight in the techniques and outcomes of RAMIE worldwide.
Background & Methods
Although robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) is increasingly adopted. The current literature on RAMIE mainly consists of single-center case series with considerable variation in reported techniques and outcomes. To gain an overview of the worldwide practice in RAMIE, an online registry was established by the Upper GI International Robotic Association (UGIRA). The collected data involve patient- and treatment characteristics, as well as postoperative outcomes that include complications as defined by the Esophageal Complications Consensus Group, length of stay, re-admissions (i.e. <30 days after discharge), mortality (i.e. in-hospital or <30 days after surgery), and pathological results. The outcomes were descriptively analyzed for this interim report.
Results
A total of 434 patients who underwent RAMIE for esophageal cancer between 2016-2019 were included in this interim analysis. The mean age was 63 years (SD ±9.7), the majority was male (n=359, 83%), and nearly all patients had an ASA score ≥2 (n=398, 92%). Adenocarcinoma (n=253, 58%) and squamous cell carcinoma (n=162, 37%) were most prevalent. The usual surgical approach was transthoracic (n=428, 99%) with the patient in semiprone position (n=393, 91%). Gastric conduit reconstruction was performed in all except one patient, who received a colonic interposition. The anastomosis was created by hand-sewing (n=207, 48%), circular stapling (n=142, 32%), or linear stapling (n=85, 20%). The median intraoperative blood loss was 120 milliliters (IQR 70-280) and the median operating time was 392 minutes (IQR 353-455). Postoperative complications occurred in 251 patients (59%) and mainly involved pulmonary complications (n=138, 32%), anastomotic leakage (n=80, 18%), and cardiac complications (n=55, 13%). Mortality occurred in 9 patients (2%) and re-admission because of complications was required in 57 patients (14%). A median of 28 lymph nodes (IQR 21-35) were removed and a radical resection was achieved in 400 patients (92%).
Conclusion
The presented results are the first to provide an overview of the techniques that are commonly used in RAMIE. By demonstrating results that are in line with recent benchmarking literature, this study demonstrates the safety and feasibility of RAMIE.
Current status of minimally invasive esophagectomy for esophageal cancer: Is it truly less invasive?
