Laparoscopy-assisted distal gastrectomy for early gastric cancer: experience with 111 consecutive patients

Laparoscopy-assisted distal gastrectomy (LADG) is gaining wider acceptance for the treatment of early gastric cancer. However, firm evidence supporting its safety and usefulness is scant, and no study has compared the outcomes of various procedures for LADG. We examined the surgical outcomes of LADG performed using different methods for lymph node dissection.

Between September 1998 and January 2005, we performed LADG in 111 patients with early gastric cancer. In the 55 patients treated initially, group 2 lymph node dissection was performed through a small, 7-cm-long incision (minilaparotomy). In 43 of these patients, hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery (HALS) was done. In the 56 patients treated more recently, lymph node dissection was performed laparoscopically. In 31 of these patients, the celiac branches of the vagus nerve were preserved. Clinical outcomes of these procedures were compared.

In the first 55 patients, HALS significantly shortened the operation time (277 vs 243 min, p < 0.05). In the latter 56 patients, LADG with preservation of the celiac branches of the vagus nerve was associated with a longer operation time (283 vs 228 min, p < 0.01) and higher blood loss (150 vs 92 g, p < 0.05) than with LADG without celiac branch preservation. There were no differences among the various operative procedures in postoperative course, including the length of the postoperative hospital stay or the rate of complications.

LADG is a safe and technically feasible procedure for the treatment of early gastric cancer. Laparoscopic lymph node dissection provided a good visual field and was easier to perform and required less time when the celiac branches of the vagus nerve were not preserved, with no negative effect on outcome.