National trends in local excision and esophagectomy for cT1N0 esophageal cancer.
62 Background: Esophageal cancer management has evolved due to improvements in staging and treatment strategies. Endoscopic local excision presents an attractive option for definitive management of T1 cancers, avoiding the morbidity of esophagectomy. We hypothesized that for cT1N0 cancers, patients who underwent local excision would have lower survival compared to esophagectomy due to potential discordant staging. Methods: The National Cancer Database was queried for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and adenocarcinoma (AC) with AJCC T1N0 clinical stage who underwent local excision (n = 1625) or esophagectomy (n = 3255) between 1998 and 2012. Chi-square analysis was used to compare demographic and clinical characteristics by procedure. Chi-square trend analysis was performed to assess trends in procedure type over time. Cox Regression analysis was performed to assess survival by procedure controlling for demographic and clinical characteristics. Results: Between 1998 and 2012, the proportion of patients who underwent local excision increased from 12% to 50% for all patients (p < 0.001); from 17% to 40% for SCC patients (p < 0.001); and from 9% to 51% for AC patients (p < 0.001). Surgical procedure varied significantly by demographic, socioeconomic status, facility, and tumor-related factors. 65% of cT1N0 cancers had concordant clinical and pathological staging after esophagectomy, with 11% having positive nodal disease; 44% were concordant after local excision. While no significant difference was seen in unadjusted survival, adjusted Cox Regression analysis indicated worse survival after esophagectomy compared to local excision for all cases (HR 1.67; 95% CI, 1.40-2.00) and for ACs with concordant staging (HR 1.54; 95% CI, 1.11-2.14). Conclusions: Local excision for cT1N0 esophageal cancer has increased over time. Staging concordance for esophagectomy is seen in two-thirds of cases. Contrary to our hypothesis, patients undergoing local excision for T1N0 cancers have better overall survival than those undergoing esophagectomy, which may reflect early differences in mortality and/or selection bias. As this study was unable to distinguish T1a from T1b, further analysis is warranted.