Abstract
There is no consensus on the mediastinal lymph node dissection range for esophagogastric junction cancer (EGJC).
Methods
We enrolled 113 patients with EGJC (defined by Nishi’s classification) who underwent R0 resection between January 2001 and December 2016, focusing on comparisons between squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and adenocarcinoma (AC).
Results
The characteristics of patients with SCC (n = 53) and AC (n = 55) were as follows: age: 65.4 ± 1.4 and 64.1 ± 1.5 years; male/female: 46/12 and 48/7; preoperative treatment (none/NAC/NACRT): 29/19/10 and 53/2/0; surgical method (subtotal esophagectomy/lower esophagectomy and gastrectomy): 39/19 and 34/21; pStage (I/II/III): 15/14/29 and 13/10/32, respectively. Esophageal invasion (EI) exceeding 20 mm was associated with an increased incidence of metastasis to the upper and middle mediastinal LN in patients with SCC and AC. However, for patients with SCC, the upper/middle mediastinal LN dissection effect index was 6.9/6.9 compared with 0/0 for AC patients.
Conclusion
In patients with EI exceeding 20 mm, esophagectomy with lymphadenectomy up to the upper mediastinum should be performed owing to the high incidence of upper and middle mediastinal LNM. However, the dissection effect is very poor in patients with AC; therefore, multidisciplinary treatment should be considered for these patients.
Mediastinal lymph node dissection and distal esophagectomy is not essential in early esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma
