Improvement in the postoperative course of salvage esophagectomy after definitive chemoradiotherapy

The aim of this study was to assess the outcome of salvage esophagectomy with less extensive lymphadenectomy, which we have performed since 2003 to improve high mortality and morbidity of standard salvage esophagectomy.

We retrospectively compared the surgical outcome of 15 patients who underwent standard salvage esophagectomy via right thoracotomy for thoracic esophageal cancer between 1993 and 2002 (earlier period) with the results of 11 patients between 2003 and 2011 (later period).

There were two mortalities in the earlier period, whereas no patient died in the later period, and there was a lower rate of morbidity. In the later period, there was a significantly shorter SIRS duration, lower CRP on postoperative days 1-5, and higher lymphocyte count on postoperative days 2-4. Long-term survival showed no significant difference between the two periods.

Salvage esophagectomy with less extensive lymphadenectomy might improve the surgical outcome while maintaining long-term survival.