• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.132-141
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• 2021

Purpose: Intracorporeal esophagojejunostomy during reduced-port gastrectomy for proximal gastric cancer is a technically challenging technique. No study has yet reported a robotic technique for anastomosis. Therefore, to address this gap, we describe our reduced-port technique and the short-term outcomes of intracorporeal esophagojejunostomy. Materials and Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of patients who underwent a totally robotic reduced-port total or proximal gastrectomy between August 2016 and March 2020. We used an infra-umbilical Single-Site^® port with two additional ports on both sides of the abdomen. To transect the esophagus, a 45-mm endolinear stapler was inserted via the right abdominal port. The common channel of the esophagojejunostomy was created between the apertures in the esophagus and proximal jejunum using a 45-mm linear stapler. The entry hole was closed with a 45-mm linear stapler or robot-sewn continuous suture. All anastomoses were performed without the aid of an assistant or placement of stay sutures. Results: Among the 40 patients, there were no conversions to open, laparoscopic, or conventional 5-port robotic surgery. The median operation time and blood loss were 254 min and 50 mL, respectively. The median number of retrieved lymph nodes was 40.5. The median time to first flatus, soft diet intake, and length of hospital stay were 3, 5, and 7 days, respectively. Three (7.5%) major complications, including two anastomosis-related complications and a case of small bowel obstruction, were treated with an endoscopic procedure and re-operation, respectively. No mortality occurred during the study period. Conclusions: Intracorporeal esophagojejunostomy during reduced-port gastrectomy can be safely performed and is feasible with acceptable surgical outcomes.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.235-247
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• 2022

Purpose: Most studies have investigated the differences in postgastrectomy quality of life (QOL) based on the surgical procedure or reconstruction method adopted; only a few studies have compared QOL based on tumor location. This large-scale study aims to investigate the differences in QOL between patients with esophagogastric junction cancer (EGJC) and those with upper third gastric cancer (UGC) undergoing the same gastrectomy procedure to evaluate the impact of tumor location on postoperative QOL. Methods: The Postgastrectomy Syndrome Assessment Scale-45 (PGSAS-45) questionnaire was distributed in 70 institutions to 2,364 patients who underwent gastrectomy for EGJC or UGC. A total of 1,909 patients were eligible for the study, and 1,744 patients who underwent total gastrectomy (TG) or proximal gastrectomy (PG) were selected for the final analysis. These patients were divided into EGJC and UGC groups; thereafter, the PGSAS-45 main outcome measures (MOMs) were compared between the two groups for each type of gastrectomy. Results: Among the post-TG patients, only one MOM was significantly better in the UGC group than in the EGJC group. Conversely, among the post-PG patients, postoperative QOL was significantly better in 6 out of 19 MOMs in the UGC group than in the EGJC group. Conclusions: Tumor location had a minimal effect on the postoperative QOL of post-TG patients, whereas among post-PG patients, there were definite differences in postoperative QOL between the two groups. It seems reasonable to conservatively estimate the benefits of PG in patients with EGJC compared to those in patients with UGC.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.5 no.3 s.19
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• pp.152-157
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• 2005

Purpose: A total gastrectomy is generally peformed for the treatment of upper third gastric cancer. However, the optimal extent of resection for early-stage upper third gastric cancer is still controversial. In this research, we compared the nutritional status and the quality of life in patients who underwent a total gastrectomy with uncut Roux en Y esophagojejunostomy with those in patients who underwent a proximal gastrectomy with esophagogastrostomy for treatment of upper third gastric cancer. Materials and Methods: We reviewed 50 patients with no evidence of recurrent disease following curative surgery for upper third gastric cancer. Among this group, 25 patients underwent a total gastrectomy (TG) and 25 patients a proximal gastrectomy (PG). 8 TG and 4 PG patients were excluded from this study because of death, refusal to interview etc. The nutritional status was assessed by measuring body weight, serum albumin, serum hemoglobin, and serum total protein. The gastrointestinal function and the quality of life were assessed by Cuschieri grading and modified Visick qrading. Results: In analysis of covariance of age and preoperative serum albumin, PG patients demonstrated lower weight loss (P=0.038), elevated serum albumin (P=0.049), and better outcome based on modified Visick grading (P=0.016) than TG, but there were no significant differences in the serum hemoglobin change (P=0.165), serum total protein change (P=0.435), and Cuschieri grading (P=0.064) between the preoperative and the postoperative data. Conclusion: In this study, a proximal gastrectomy led to a better nutritional status and quality of life than a total gastrectomy, as judged from the low weight loss, elevated serum albumin and better modified Visick grade.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.339-347
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• 2018

Purpose: To evaluate the status of number 3b lymph node (LN) station in patients with adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG) and to investigate the optimal indications for radical proximal gastrectomy (PG) for AEG. Materials and Methods: Data of 51 patients with clinically advanced Siewert types II and III AEG who underwent total gastrectomy (TG) between April 2010 and July 2017 were reviewed. The proportion of metastatic LNs at each LN station was examined. Number 3 LN station was separately classified into number 3a and number 3b. The risk factors for number 3b LN metastasis and the clinicopathological features of number 3b-positive AEG patients were investigated. Results: The incidences of LN metastasis were the highest in number 1 (47.1%), followed by number 2 (23.5%), number 3a (39.2%), and number 7 (23.5%) LN stations. LN metastasis in number 3b LN station was detected in 4 patients (7.8%). A gastric invasion length of more than 40 mm was a significant risk factor for number 3b LN metastasis. All 4 patients with number 3b-positive AEG had advanced cancer with a gastric invasion length of more than 40 mm. The 5-year survival rate of patients with a gastric invasion length of more than 40 mm was 50.0%. Conclusions: Radical PG may be indicated for patients with AEG with gastric invasion length of less than 40 mm.

• 대한위암학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2005.04a
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• pp.28-28
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• 2005

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.24-34
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• 2022

Purpose: Total gastrectomy (TG) with lymph node (LN) dissection is recommended for early gastric cancer (EGC) but is not indicated for endoscopic resection (ER). We aimed to identify patients who could avoid TG by establishing a scoring system for predicting lymph node metastasis (LNM) in proximal EGCs. Materials and Methods: Between January 2003 and December 2017, a total of 1,025 proximal EGC patients who underwent TG with LN dissection were enrolled. Patients who met the absolute ER criteria based on pathological examination were excluded. The pathological risk factors for LNM were determined using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. A scoring system for predicting LNM was developed and applied to the validation group. Results: Of the 1,025 cases, 100 (9.8%) showed positive LNM. Multivariate analysis confirmed the following independent risk factors for LNM: tumor size >2 cm, submucosal invasion, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), and perineural invasion (PNI). A scoring system was created using the four aforementioned variables, and the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves in both the training (0.85) and validation (0.84) groups indicated excellent discrimination. The probability of LNM in mucosal cancers without LVI or PNI, regardless of size, was <2.9%. Conclusions: Our scoring system involving four variables can predict the probability of LNM in proximal EGC and might be helpful in determining additional treatment plans after ER, functioning as a good indicator of the adequacy of treatments other than TG in high surgical risk patients.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.44-49
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• 2001

Purpose: Quality of life (QOL) assessment should be applied in surgical settings to compare treatment options. We compared QOL after a subtotal versus a total gastrectomy for gastric cancer to identify which resection would produce a better QOL for the patient. Patients and Methods: We studied 362 patients with no evidence of recurrent disease after curative surgery for gastric cancer. The QOL was measured by assessing patient health perceptions according to the Spitzer index and Troidl score and by treatment-specific symptoms according to Korenaga and others with some modifications. High scores reflect a better QOL. Results: The mean score of the Spitzer index was $8.87\pm1.36$ after a subtotal gastrectomy and $8.80\pm1.23$ after a total gastrectomy. More than $80\%$ of the patients in both groups maintained good quality of life when measured by the Spitzer index. The mean Troidl score was $10.41\pm2.12$ after a subtotal gastrectomy and $9.79\pm2.16$ after a total gastrectomy (p=0.033). Swallowing difficulty was more frequent after a total gastrectomy (p=0.002). There was a statistically significant difference in the meal size (p=0.044). Other variables of the Troidl score revealed no statistically significant differences. Dizziness was significantly more frequent after a total gastrectomy than after a subtotal gastrec tomy (p=0.009). Conclusion: We conclude that in terms of postoperative quality of life, a subtotal gastrectomy has advantages over a total gastrectomy. In those cases where an adequate proximal safety margin can be achieved by a subtotal gastrectomy, that procedure is preferable to a total gastrectomy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.8
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• pp.4871-4875
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• 2013

This meta-analysis was performed to evaluate and compare the outcomes of robotic gastrectomy (RG) and laparoscopic gastrectomy (LG) for treating gastric cancer. A systematic literature search was carried out using the PubMed database, Web of Knowledge, and the Cochrane Library database to obtain comparative studies assessing the safety and efficiency between RG and LG in May, 2013. Data of interest were analyzed by using of Review Manager version 5.2 software (Cochrane Collaboration). A fixed effects model or random effects model was applied according to heterogeneity. Seven papers reporting results that compared robotic gastrectomy with laparoscopic gastrectomy for gastric cancer were selected for this meta-analysis. Our metaanalysis included 2,235 patients with gastric cancer, of which 1,473 had undergone laparoscopic gastrectomy, and 762 had received robotic gastrectomy. Compared with laparoscopic gastrectomy, robotic gastrectomy was associated with longer operative time but less blood loss. There were no significant difference in terms of hospital stay, total postoperative complication rate, proximal margin, distal margin, numbers of harvested lymph nodes and mortality rate between robotic gastrectomy and laparoscopic gastrectomy. Our meta-analysis showed that robotic gastrectomy is a safe technique for treating gastric cancer that compares favorably with laparoscopic gastrectomy in short term outcomes. However, the long term outcomes between the two techniques need to be further examined.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.220-234
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• 2022

Purpose: The incidence of adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG) has increased in recent years, and the optimal surgical strategy for AEG remains highly controversial. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of proximal gastrectomy with double-tract reconstruction (PG-DT) for the treatment of patients with AEG. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with Siewert type II/III AEG between January 2013 and July 2018. Clinicopathological characteristics, survival, surgical outcomes, quality of life (QOL), and nutritional status were compared between the PG-DT and total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y anastomosis (TG-RY) groups. Results: After propensity score matching, 33 patients in each group were analyzed. There were no statistical differences between the 2 groups in terms of disease-free survival and overall survival. The surgical option was not an independent prognostic factor based on the multivariate analysis. In addition, no differences were found in terms of surgical complications. There were no significant differences in QOL assessed by the Visick grade, Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale, or endoscopic findings. Furthermore, the long-term nutritional advantage of the PG-DT group was significantly greater than that of the TG-RY group. Conclusions: PG-DT is a safe and effective procedure for patients with local Siewert type II/III AEG, regardless of the TNM stage.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.191-200
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• 2015

Purpose: This study evaluated the functional and oncological outcomes of proximal gastrectomy (PG) in comparison with total gastrectomy (TG) for upper-third early gastric cancer (EGC). Materials and Methods: The medical records of upper-third EGC patients who had undergone PG (n=192) or TG (n=157) were reviewed. The PG group was further subdivided into patients who had undergone conventional open PG (cPG; n=157) or modified laparoscopy-assisted PG (mLAPG; n=35). Patients who had undergone mLAPG had a longer portion of their intra-abdominal esophagus preserved than patients who had undergone cPG. Surgical morbidity, recurrence, long-term nutritional status, and the incidence of reflux esophagitis were compared between the groups. Results: The rate of postoperative complications was significantly lower for PG than TG (16.7% vs. 31.2%), but the five-year overall survival rate was comparable between the two groups (99.3% vs. 96.3%). Postoperative levels of hemoglobin and albumin were significantly higher for patients who had undergone PG. However, the incidence of reflux esophagitis was higher for PG than for TG (37.4% vs. 3.7%; P<0.001). mLAPG was related to a lower incidence of reflux esophagitis after PG (P<0.001). Conclusions: Compared to TG, PG showed an advantage in terms of postoperative morbidity and nutrition, and there was a comparable prognosis between the two procedures. Preserving the intra-abdominal esophagus may lower the incidence of reflux esophagitis associated with PG.