• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.280-286
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• 1995

In our hospital we have seen 38 cases of esophageal cancer from June 1984 until June 1994. They composed of 34[89% men and 4[11% women, their age distributed from 35 to 74, mean age was 57.55 7.43. Their symptoms were varied, dysphagia[97% , pyrosis[58% , chest pain[31% , weight loss[31% , anemia[8% , vomiting[5% , and hoarseness[1% . Surgical treatment was done with esophagectomy and upper GI reconstruction 35 cases, and palliative gastrostomy was 3 cases. There was no operative mortality, and operative morbidity was 8 cases of anastomotic leakage, 5 cases of wound infection, 5 cases of pleural effusion, hoarseness, pneumothorax, and lung abscess. Pathologic lesion distribution: upper thoracic esophagus 6 cases[16% , middle thoracic esophagus 17 cases[45% , and lower thoracic esophagus 15 cases[39% . There was no statistical difference of transhiatal esophagectomy and transthoracic esophagectomy in complications and hospitalization period in this study but we proved the superiority of gastric upper GI reconstruction rather than colon upper GI reconstruction in anastomotic leakage and hospitalization period. Cumulative survival rate was 76.2% in 1 year survival, 33.9% in 3 year survival, 25.4% in 5 year survival, 12.7% in 10 year survival. There was no relationship with the time of dysphagia with survival in this study.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.214-218
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• 1993

Extensive lymphnode dissection combined with thoracic esophagectomy improved prognosis of esophageal cancer, but there is still high postoperative recurrence rate. The immunologic capacity of esophageal cancer patients is compromised by surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy. Therefore immunological therapy for esophageal cancer patients seems rational. We have adopted postoperative immunochemotherapy since 1988. From 1988 to 1992, 31 patients with thoracic esophageal cancer underwent esophagectomy and radical lymphnode dissection, and selected patient with early esophageal cancer and unfit for thoracotomy underwent transhiatal esophagectomy in Korea University Hospital. Mean age of patients was 56 years. There were 28 squamous cell cancers, 2 adenocarcinomas and one mixed tumor. There were 4 stage I, 3 stage II, 18 stage III, and 6 stage IV cases. There were no opeartive death. Postoperative complications included anastomotic leakage in 9%, pneumonia 3 %, cylothorax 3%, recurrent laryngeal neve paresis in 3% of all patients. Curative resection group[n=19] received immunotherapy. Noncurative resection group[n=12] received postoperative immunochemotherapy, including PS-K, CDDP, and 5-FU. Operative survivors were followed from 4 months to 5 years. There were 3 lost of follow-up. Actuarial survival rate is 79% to one year, 54% to two years and 27% to five years.In conclusion, an transthoracic esophagectomy combined with systematic lymph node dissection and postoperative immunochemotherapy could improve survival rate for esophageal cancer.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.536-541
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• 1996

Between June 1988 and June 1994, twenty five patients with locAlly advanced esophageal carcinoma received preoperative chemotherapy (Cisplatln, 5-Fluorouracil with or without Etoposide) and followed by resection. All patients had clinical evidence of airway involvement or distant Iymphnode involve- ment (M 1 Iymphnode) on bronchoscopy or computed tomographic scans. The major response rate to chemotherapy decided by the postoperative stage was 48% (12125). The resection rate was 92% (23/25) with overall complete resection rate of 72% (18125). Two patients had exploratory laparotomy (thorn- cotomy) only. Thirteen patients had esophagogastrostomy with a combined abdominl and Rt. thoracic approach (Ivor Lewis operation), slx pAtients had transhiatal esophagectomy, four patients had esophagogastrostomy with a combined Rt. thoracotonly & abdominal, cervical approach. There were three postoperative deaths (12%). Follow-up duration was between 3.3 months to 65 months. Median survival ime of resected patients except hospital death was 14.8 months. Actuarial survival at 12, 24 months was 72.9%, 26.2%. Signifi- cant better survival was associated with responder group (postoperative stage less than lIB) (P=0.029). These results demonstrate that 1) Preoperative Cisplatin based combined chemotherapy Produce high response rate, 2) High complete resection rate with acceptable mortality rate occur after preoperative chemotherapy, 3) Better surviL dl can be anticipated if complete resection performed after major re- sponse to preoperative chemotherapy.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.681-688
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• 1996

Most patients with carcinoma of the cervico-thoracic esophagus present with locally advanced disease. For this reason, therapeutic efforts have been largely palliative, focused on eradicating locoregional dis- ease, and have been attended by high morbidity rates. A 61 year old man was diagnosed to advanced cervicothoracic esophageal cancer(Type 1) and reli ved concurrent chromo-radiotherapy for 2 months in St. Mary's Hospital. And then he underwent transhiatal subtotal esophagectomy and radical dissection of cervical and superior mediastinal Iymph nodes with thoracoscopy. The histologic diagnosis was early esophageal cancer(Type 0-llb, SM2) and the curability of operation was calculated to highly curative(Clll). And the postoperative course was unevenful.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.227-231
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• 2019

Background: There is no established surgical procedure for the treatment of epiphrenic esophageal diverticulum. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes of esophageal diverticulectomy using abdominal and thoracic approaches. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 30 patients who underwent esophageal diverticulectomy through the thoracic or abdominal approach for an epiphrenic diverticulum at a single center between 1996 and 2018. We compared clinical outcomes, including the postoperative length of stay, time from the operation to oral feeding, leakage rate, and reoperation rate between the 2 groups. Results: The median age was 56 years. Of the 30 patients, 18 (60%) underwent diverticulectomy via the thoracic approach and 12 (40%) underwent the abdominal approach. The median hospital stay was 10 days (range, 5-211 days) in the thoracic approach group and 9.5 days (range, 5-18 days) in the abdominal approach group. The median time from the operation until oral feeding was 6.5 days (range, 3-299 days) when the thoracic approach was used and 5 days (range, 1-11 days) when the abdominal approach was used. In the thoracic approach group, the leakage rate was 16.67% and the reoperation rate was 27.78%. However, there were no cases of leakage or reoperation in the abdominal approach group. Conclusion: The abdominal approach for esophageal diverticulectomy is a feasible and appropriate alternative to the thoracic approach.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.99-106
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• 2016

Background: Barium swallow is performed following esophagectomy to evaluate the anastomosis for detection of leaks and to assess the emptying of the gastric conduit. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of the barium swallow study in diagnosing anastomotic leaks following esophagectomy. Methods: Patients who underwent esophagectomy from January 2000 to December 2013 at our institution were investigated. Barium swallow was routinely done between days 5-7 to detect a leak. These results were compared to clinically determined leaks (defined by neck wound infection requiring jejunal feeds and or parenteral nutrition) during the postoperative period. The sensitivity and specificity of barium swallow in diagnosing clinically significant anastomotic leaks was determined. Results: A total of 395 esophagectomies were performed (mean age, 62.2 years). The indications for the esophagectomy were as follows: malignancy (n=320), high-grade dysplasia (n=14), perforation (n=27), benign stricture (n=7), achalasia (n=16), and other (n=11). A variety of techniques were used including transhiatal (n=351), McKeown (n=35), and Ivor Lewis (n=9) esophagectomies. Operative mortality was 2.8% (n=11). Three hundred and sixty-eight patients (93%) underwent barium swallow study after esophagectomy. Clinically significant anastomotic leak was identified in 36 patients (9.8%). Barium swallow was able to detect only 13/36 clinically significant leaks. The sensitivity of the swallow in diagnosing a leak was 36% and specificity was 97%. The positive and negative predictive values of barium swallow study in detecting leaks were 59% and 93%, respectively. Conclusion: Barium swallow is an insensitive but specific test for detecting leaks at the cervical anastomotic site after esophagectomy.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.36-42
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• 2012

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the surgical outcomes of abdominal total gastrectomy, without mediastinal lymph node dissection for type II and III gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancers. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed surgical outcomes in 67 consecutive patients with type II and III GEJ cancers that were treated by the surgical resection between 2004 and 2008. Results: Thirty (45%) patients had type II and 37 (55%) had type III tumor. Among the 65 (97%) patients with curative surgery, 21 (31%) patients underwent the extended total gastrectomy with trans-hiatal distal esophageal resection, and in 44 (66%) patients, abdominal total gastrectomy alone was done. Palliative gastrectomy was performed in two patients due to the accompanying peritoneal metastasis. The postoperative morbidity and mortality rates were 21.4% and 1.5%, respectively. After a median follow up of 36 months, the overall 3-years was 68%, without any differences between the Siewert types or the operative approaches (transhiatal approach vs. abdominal approach alone). On the univariate analysis, the T stage, N stage and R0 resection were found to be associated with the survival, and multivariate analysis revealed that the N stage was a poor independent prognostic factor for survival. Conclusions: Type II and III GEJ cancers may successfully be treated with the abdominal total gastrectomy, without mediastinal lymph node dissection in the Korean population.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.257-263
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• 2018

Purpose: Studies on the physiology of the transposed stomach as an esophageal substitute in the form of a gastric pull-up or a gastric tube in children are limited. We conducted a study of motility and the pH of gastric esophageal substitutes using manometry and 24-hour pH measurements in 10 such patients. Methods: Manometry and 24 hour pH studies were performed on 10 children aged 24 to 55 months who had undergone gastric esophageal replacement. Results: Six gastric tubes (4, isoperistaltic; 2, reverse gastric tubes) and 4 gastric pull-ups were studied. Two gastric tubes and 4 gastric pull-ups were transhiatal. Four gastric tubes were retrosternal. The mean of the lowest pH at the midpoint of the substitute was 4.0 (range, 2.8-5.0) and in the stomach remaining below the diaphragm was 3.3 (range, 1.9-4.2). In both types of substitute, the difference between the peak and the nadir pH recorded in the intra-thoracic and the sub-diaphragmatic portion of the stomach was statistically significant (p<0.05), with the pH in the portion below the diaphragm being lower. The lowest pH values in the substitute and in the remnant stomach were noted mainly in the evening hours whereas the highest pH was noted mainly in the morning hours. All the cases showed a simultaneous rise in the intra-cavitatory pressure along the substitute while swallowing. Conclusion: The study suggested a normal gastric circadian rhythm in the gastric esophageal substitute. Mass contractions occurred in response to swallowing. The substitute may be able to effectively clear contents.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.626-631
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• 1996

The forty patients with carcirLoma of the esophagus or cardia seen at National Medical Center between November 1983 and April 1994 underwent surgical exploration. The esophagogastrectomy was carried out in 29 of 40 patients, one case through right thoracotomy, the others through left thoracotomy. Two patients underwent colon bypass surgeries due to upper esophageal cancer Transhiatal esop agectomy was performed In one case. Feeding gastrostomy or feeding jejunostomy were performed in 8 patients due to the advanced stage or malnutrition. In this report, we evaluated the long-term results in the 28 patients who underwent esophagogastrectomy for palliation through the left thoracotomy. There were 25 men(89%) and 3 women(11 %), and the mean age was 58.65$\pm$7.15 years(range, 46 to 73 years). The most frequent preoperative symptoms included dysphagia (22), weight loss (15), chest pain (6), vomiting (1), and hoarsness (1). Twenty-three patients had sqamous cell cancers of mid-and lower esophagus and five adenocarcionomas of cardia. One patient died in the hospital within 30 days of the op- eration for a hospital mortality rate of ).7%, Cause of death was sepsis due to anastomotic leakage. There were five additional complications in five patients; acute respiratory distress syndrome (1), post-op- erative bleeding (1), diaphragmatic hernia (1), acute renal failure (1) and late raft stenosis (1). The one year, 1틴o years, and three years acturial survival rate were 75.6$\pm$9.5%, 43.2$\pm$ 11.6%, 21.6: 10.5$\circledcirc$ re- spectively. The average survival was 21.8 months. The data from this study suggest that esophagogastrectomy through the left thoracotomy can achieve resonable long-term palliation for carci- noma of the esophagus. The operation can be performed with a low operative mortality and few serious postoperative complications.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.316-322
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• 2002

Objective : A retrospective study was peformed to evaluate whether postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy can improve survival and decrease recurrence as compared with surgery alone in resected esophageal cancer. Materials and Methods : From Jan. 1985 to Dec. 1993, among 94 esophageal cancer Patients treated with surgery, fifty-one patients were included in this study. Transthoracic esophagectomy was peformed in 35 patients and transhiatal esophagectomy in 16. Postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy was peformed 4 weeks after surgery in 26 among 38 patients in stage II and III. A total dose of $30\~60\;Gy$ in 1.8 Gy daily fraction, median 54 Gy over 6 weeks, was delivered in the mediastinum+both supraclavicular lymph nodes or celiac lymph nodes according to the tumor location. Forty-seven patients$(92\%)$ had squamous histology. The median follow-up period was 38 months. Results : The overall 2-year and 5-year survival and median survival were $56.4\%,\;36.8\%$ and 45 months. Two-year and 5-year survival and median survival by stage were $92\%,\;60.3\%$ for stage I, $63\%,\;42\%$ and 51 months for stage II and $34\%,\;23\%$ and 19 months for stage III (p=0.04). For stage II and III patients, 5-year survival and median survival were $22.8\%$, 45 months for the surgery alone group and $37.8\%$, 22 months for the postoperative RT group (p=0.89). For stage III patients, 2-year survival and median survival were $0\%$, 11 months for the surgery alone group and $36.5\%$, 20 months for the postoperative RT group (p=0.14). Local and distant failure rates for stage II and III were $50\%,\;16\%$ for the surgery alone and $39\%,\;31\%$ for the postoperative RT group. For N1 patients, local failure rate was $71\%$ for the surgery alone group and $37\%$ for the postoperative RT group (p=0.19). Among 10 local failures in the postoperative RT group, in-field failures were 2, marginal failures 1, out-field 5 and anastomotic site failures 2. Conclusion : There were no statistically significant differences in either the overall survival or the patterns of failure between the surgery alone group and the postoperative RT group for resected stage II and III esophageal cancer. But this study showed a tendency of survival improvement and decrease in local failure when postoperative RT was peformed for stage III or N1 though statistically not significant. To decrease local failure, a more generous radiation field encompassing the supraclavicular, mediastinal, and celiac lymph nodes and anastomotic site in postoperative adjuvant treatment should be considered.