Extended lymphadenectomy for gastric cancer: results in a teaching hospital

Lymphadenectomy including second-echelon lymph nodes (D2 resection) for gastric cancer has not been widely adopted partly as a result of a reported increase in operative morbidity and mortality. In the present study we examined the operative risk of D2 resection in a public teaching hospital. From 1995 to 1998, 57 patients underwent exploratory laparotomy for gastric neoplasm: nine with curative D2 resection (Group I), 17 with curative but less than D2 resection (Group II), 16 with palliative resection (Group III), and 15 with no resection (Group IV). Among the four groups, patients with curative D2 resection (Group I) were older and had increased operative time and estimated blood loss, but their need for blood transfusion, the operative morbidity and mortality, and the mean hospital stay were not increased. In contrast, those patients with palliative resection (Group III) had the highest morbidity among all groups, the only fatality, and prolonged hospital stay. Therefore, curative D2 resection can be performed safely even with significant resident involvement. The advanced patient age or the extensive dissection does not increase its surgical risk. Hence, D2 dissection should be considered whenever curative resection is feasible because it allows accurate staging with the added benefit of possible improvement in patient survival.