OGC P57 Are Cervical Lymph Node Dissections in Oesophageal Cancer Patients Undergoing Oesophagectomy Beneficial?

Abstract

Abstract Background Cervical lymph node dissection in patients undergoing oesophagectomy can be indicated when there is suspicion of involved cervical nodes, although there is controversy around the benefits of this additional procedure on the prognosis of these patients. This study aims to assess the consequences and survival after cervical lymph node dissection, and to weigh the risks and benefits of this procedure. Methods This retrospective study included seven patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and one with oesophageal adenocarcinoma who underwent cervical lymph node dissection in addition to oesophagectomy at the Churchill Hospital. There was a male to female ratio of 1:3, and all had neoadjuvant chemotherapy and were staged with PET-CT. PET staging scan results were compared pre and post neo-adjuvant therapy (NAT) to assess nodal involvement. Final histopathology was also recorded. Results All patients had evidence of cervical nodal involvement on PET scan, two of whom developed nodal involvement only after NAT. Only two patients had neck node involvement on histopathology: one had SCC and showed good response to NAT; the other had undifferentiated carcinoma and showed new para-tracheal node involvement after NAT, later developing supraclavicular node recurrence. Two cases were complicated by recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) injury, one with bilateral and one with partial vocal cord palsy. There was a 5-year survival rate of 62.5%, with non-survivors uniquely having recurrent disease. Conclusions Lymph node dissection alongside oesophagectomy achieved good 5-year survival in this small cohort, but with a significant risk of RLN injury. Further studies investigating the proportion of metastatic neck nodes found on dissection, long term survival benefits and cancer reoccurrence are required.