Influences of age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index on prognosis of patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastrectomy: a multicenter retrospective study / 中华消化外科杂志

Objective:To investigate the influences of age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index (ACCI) on prognosis of patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastrectomy.Methods:The retrospective cohort study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 242 gastric cancer patients who underwent laparoscopic radical gastrectomy in 19 hospitals of the Chinese Laparoscopic Gastrointestinal Surgery Study Group-04 study, including 54 patients in Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, 32 patients in the First Hospital of Putian City, 32 patients in Renji Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, 31 patients in Zhangzhou Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, 17 patients in Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University, 11 patients in the First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, 8 patients in Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital, 8 patients in Meizhou People′s Hospital, 7 patients in Fujian Provincial Hospital, 6 patients in Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University, 6 patients in Longyan First Hospital, 5 patients in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, 5 patients in the First Hospital Affiliated to Army Medical University, 4 patients in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 4 patients in West China Hospital of Sichuan University, 4 patients in Beijing University Cancer Hospital, 3 patients in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, 3 patients in Guangdong Provincial People′s Hospital, 2 patients in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi′an Jiaotong University, from September 2016 to October 2017 were collected. There were 193 males and 49 females, aged 62(range, 23?74)years. Observation indicators: (1) age distribution, comorbidities and ACCI status of patients; (2) the grouping of ACCI and comparison of clinicopathological characteristics of patients in each group; (3) incidence of postoperative early complications and analysis of factors affecting postoperative early complications; (4) follow-up; (5) analysis of factors affecting the 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of patients. Follow-up was conducted using outpatient examination or telephone interview to detect postoperative survival of patients up to December 2020. Measurement data with normal distribution were represented as Mean± SD, and comparison between groups was conducted using the t test. Measurement data with skewed distribution were represented as M( Q1, Q3) or M(range), and comparison between groups was conducted using the Mann-Whitney U test. Count data were described as absolute numbers or percentages, and comparison between groups was conducted using the chi-square test or Fisher exact probability. Comparison of ordinal data was conducted using the nonparametric rank sum test. The X-Tile software (version 3.6.1) was used to analyze the best ACCI grouping threshold. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate survival rates and draw survival curves. The Log-Rank test was used for survival analysis. The Logistic regression model was used to analyze the factors affecting postoperative early complications. The COX proportional hazard model was used for univariate and multivariate analyses of factors affecting the 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of patients. Multivariate analysis used stepwise regression to include variables with P<0.05 in univariate analysis and variables clinically closely related to prognosis. Results:(1) Age distribution, comor-bidities and ACCI status of patients. Of the 242 patients, there were 28 cases with age <50 years, 68 cases with age of 50 to 59 years, 113 cases with age of 60 to 69 years, 33 cases with age of 70 to 79 years. There was 1 patient combined with mild liver disease, 1 patient combined with diabetes of end-organ damage, 2 patients combined with peripheral vascular diseases, 2 patients combined with peptic ulcer, 6 patients combined with congestive heart failure, 8 patients combined with chronic pulmonary diseases, 9 patients with diabetes without end-organ damage. The ACCI of 242 patients was 2 (range, 0-4). (2) The grouping of ACCI and comparison of clinicopathological characteristics of patients in each group. Results of X-Tile software analysis showed that ACCI=3 was the best grouping threshold. Of the 242 patients, 194 cases with ACCI <3 were set as the low ACCI group and 48 cases with ACCI ≥3 were set as the high ACCI group, respectively. Age, body mass index, cases with preoperative comorbidities, cases of American Society of Anesthesiologists classification as stage Ⅰ, stage Ⅱ, stage Ⅲ, tumor diameter, cases with tumor histological type as signet ring cell or poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma and cases with tumor type as moderately or well differentiated adenocarcinoma, cases with tumor pathological T staging as stage T1, stage T2, stage T3, stage T4, chemotherapy cycles were (58±9)years, (22.6±2.9)kg/m 2, 31, 106, 85, 3, (4.0±1.9)cm, 104, 90, 16, 29, 72, 77, 6(4,6) in the low ACCI group, versus (70±4) years, (21.7±2.7)kg/m 2, 23, 14, 33, 1, (5.4±3.1)cm, 36, 12, 3, 4, 13, 28, 4(2,5) in the high ACCI group, showing significant differences in the above indicators between the two groups ( t=-14.37, 1.98, χ2=22.64, Z=-3.11, t=-2.91, χ2=7.22, Z=-2.21, -3.61, P<0.05). (3) Incidence of postoperative early complications and analysis of factors affecting postoperative early complications. Of the 242 patients, 33 cases had postoperative early complications, including 20 cases with local complications and 16 cases with systemic complica-tions. Some patients had multiple complications at the same time. Of the 20 patients with local complications, 12 cases had abdominal infection, 7 cases had anastomotic leakage, 2 cases had incision infection, 2 cases had abdominal hemorrhage, 2 cases had anastomotic hemorrhage and 1 case had lymphatic leakage. Of the 16 patients with systemic complications, 11 cases had pulmonary infection, 2 cases had arrhythmias, 2 cases had sepsis, 1 case had liver failure, 1 case had renal failure, 1 case had pulmonary embolism, 1 case had deep vein thrombosis, 1 case had urinary infection and 1 case had urine retention. Of the 33 cases with postoperative early complications, there were 3 cases with grade Ⅰ complications, 22 cases with grade Ⅱ complications, 5 cases with grade Ⅲa complications, 2 cases with grade Ⅲb complications and 1 case with grade Ⅳ complica-tions of Clavien-Dindo classification. Cases with postoperative early complications, cases with local complications, cases with systemic complications were 22, 13, 9 in the low ACCI group, versus 11, 7, 7 in the high ACCI group, respectively. There were significant differences in cases with postoperative early complications and cases with systemic complications between the two groups ( χ2=4.38, 4.66, P<0.05), and there was no significant difference in cases with local complications between the two groups ( χ2=2.20, P>0.05). Results of Logistic regression analysis showed that ACCI was a related factor for postoperative early complications of gastric cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastrectomy [ odds ratio=2.32, 95% confidence interval ( CI) as 1.04-5.21, P<0.05]. (4) Follow-up. All the 242 patients were followed up for 36(range,1?46)months. During the follow-up, 53 patients died and 13 patients survived with tumor. The 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of the 242 patients was 73.5%. The follow-up time, cases died and cases survived with tumor during follow-up, the 3-year recurrence-free survival rate were 36(range, 2-46)months, 29, 10, 80.0% for the low ACCI group, versus 35(range, 1-42)months, 24, 3, 47.4% for the high ACCI group. There was a significant difference in the 3-year recurrence-free survival rate between the two groups ( χ2=30.49, P<0.05). (5) Analysis of factors affecting the 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of patients. Results of univariate analysis showed that preoperative comorbidities, ACCI, tumor diameter, histological type, vascular invasion, lymphatic invasion, neural invasion, tumor pathological TNM staging, postoperative early complications were related factors for postoperative 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of gastric cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastrectomy [ hazard ratio ( HR)=2.52, 3.64, 2.62, 0.47, 2.87, 1.90, 1.86, 21.77, 1.97, 95% CI as 1.52-4.17, 2.22-5.95, 1.54-4.46, 0.27-0.80, 1.76-4.70, 1.15-3.12, 1.10-3.14, 3.01-157.52, 1.11-3.50, P<0.05]. Results of multivariate analysis showed that ACCI, tumor pathological TNM staging, adjuvant chemotherapy were indepen-dent influencing factors for postoperative 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of gastric cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastrectomy ( HR=3.65, 11.00, 40.66, 0.39, 95% CI as 2.21-6.02, 1.40-86.73, 5.41-305.69, 0.22-0.68, P<0.05). Conclusions:ACCI is a related factor for post-operative early complications of gastric cancer patients undergoing laparos-copic radical gastrectomy. ACCI, tumor pathological TNM staging, adjuvant chemotherapy are indepen-dent influencing factors for postoperative 3-year recurrence-free survival rate of gastric cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic radical gastrectomy.

Application of Near-Infrared Fluorescence Imaging with Indocyanine Green in Totally Laparoscopic Distal Gastrectomy

Purpose@#Recently, totally laparoscopic gastrectomy has been gradually accepted by surgeons worldwide for gastric cancer treatment. Complete dissection of the lymph nodes and the establishment of the surgical margin are the most important considerations for curative gastric cancer surgery. Previous studies have demonstrated that indocyanine green (ICG)-traced laparoscopic gastrectomy significantly improves the completeness of lymph node dissection. However, it remains difficult to identify the tumor location intraoperatively for gastric cancers that are staged ≤T3. Here, we investigated the feasibility of ICG fluorescence for lymph node mapping and tumor localization during totally laparoscopic distal gastrectomy. @*Materials and Methods@#Preoperative and perioperative data from consecutive patients with gastric cancer who underwent a totally laparoscopic distal gastrectomy were collected and analyzed. The patients were categorized into the ICG (n=61) or the non-ICG (n=75) group based on whether preoperative endoscopic mucosal ICG injection was performed. @*Results@#The ICG group had a shorter operation time and less intraoperative blood loss.Moreover, significantly more lymph nodes were harvested in the ICG group than the non-ICG group. No pathologically positive margin was found and there was no significant difference in either the proximal or distal surgical margins between the 2 groups. @*Conclusions@#Near-infrared fluorescence imaging with ICG can be successfully used in totally laparoscopic distal gastrectomy, and it contributes to both the completeness of D2 lymph node dissection and confirmation of the gastric transection line. Well-designed prospective randomized studies are needed in the future to fully validate our findings.

Analysis of risk factors of pulmonary infection in patients over 60 years of age after radical resection for gastric cancer / 中华胃肠外科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the risk factors of postoperative pulmonary infection (PPI) in patients over 60 years of age with gastric cancer after radical gastrectomy.@*METHODS@#Clinicopathological data of 373 patients over 60 years of age who underwent radical gastrectomy at Department IV of Gastrointestinal Cancer Center, Peking University Cancer Hospital, from April 2009 to December 2016 were retrospectively collected in this case-control study. The clinicopathological characteristics of patients with postoperative pulmonary infection (including postoperative atelectasis) and those without pulmonary infection were compared. A Student t-test (reported as Mean±SD if data matching normal distribution) or Mann-Whitney U test [reported as median (quartile) if data did not conform to normal distribution] was used to analyze continuous variables. A χ² test or Fisher exact tests (reported as number and percentage) was used for categorical variables. Multivariable logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors for pulmonary infection after operation of gastric cancer.PPI was defined as postoperative patients with elevated body temperature (>38.0 degrees centigrade) for more than 24 hours; cough and expectoration; positive sputum bacteria culture;recent infiltration, consolidation or atelectasis confirmed by chest imaging examination.@*RESULTS@#Among 373 patients, 50 cases had PPI(13.4%, PPI group), 323 cases had no PPI(86.6%, non-PPI group). There were 39 (78.0%) and 178(55.1%) patients with comorbidities (including hypertension, diabetes and cardiopulmonary disease) preoperatively in PPI and non-PPI group, respectively. The difference between two groups was statistically significant (χ²=9.325,P=0.002). The incidence of preoperative hypoalbuminemia in PPI group was also significantly higher than that in non-PPI group [10.0%(5/50) vs. 3.1% (10/323),χ²=4.098, P=0.048]. Compared to non-PPI group, the rate of total gastrectomy [54.0%(27/50) vs. 34.4% (111/323), χ²=12.501, P=0.002], postoperative wound pain [34.0%(17/50) vs. 11.8% (38/323),χ²=16.928, P<0.001], secondary operation [6.0%(3/50) vs. 0.6% (2/323), χ²=6.032, P=0.014] and the rate of gastric tube removal later than 7 days postoperatively [96.0%(48/50) vs. 84.5%(273/323),χ²=4.811, P=0.028] were significantly higher in PPI group, respectively. The postoperative hospital stay was also prolonged in PPI group [16.0(9.5) days vs. 12.0(5.0) days, U=4 275.0, P<0.001]. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that preoperative comorbidities (OR=4.008, 95%CI:1.768-9.086, P=0.001), abdominal infection (OR=3.164, 95%CI:1.075-9.313, P=0.037), and wound pain (OR=3.428, 95%CI:1.557-7.548, P=0.002) were independent risk factors for PPI in patients over 60 years of age with gastric cancer. Furthermore, 50 patients with pulmonary infection were classified according to the length of latency and the type of infection. The patients with PPI latency ≤ 3 days were classified as early onset (34 cases, 68.0%), and those with latency ≥ 4 days as delayed onset (16 cases, 32.0%); PPI combined with surgical infection (including anastomotic leakage, abdominal infection, duodenal stump leakage, wound infection, etc.) was classified into mixed infection group (13 cases, 26.0%), with non-surgical infection as simple infection group (37 cases, 74.0%). The results showed that the pulmonary infection occurred 0 to 12 days (median 3 days) before surgical infection in mix infection group. The incidence of previous chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in patients with early onset was significantly higher than that in patients with delayed onset [17.6%(6/34) vs. 0, χ²=5.005, P=0.025], and the incidence of mixed infection in patients with delayed onset was significantly higher than that in patients with early onset [50%(8/16) vs. 14.7%(5/34), χ²=6.730, P=0.009],but there was no significant difference in postoperative hospital stay between the two groups[17.0(9.8) days vs. 14.0(9.5) days, U=224.0, P=0.317].@*CONCLUSIONS@#Postoperative pulmonary infection is common in gastric cancer patients over 60 years of age. Preoperative comorbidities, abdominal infection and wound pain are independent risk factors for postoperative pulmonary infection. Pulmonary infection within 3 days after operation is associated with preoperative COPD. For patients suffering from PPI after the 4th day,attentions should be paid to abdominal infection and anastomotic leakage.

Comparison of postoperative short-term complications and endoscopy scan in distal gastrectomy for gastric cancer between Billroth I and Billroth II reconstruction / 中华胃肠外科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To compare the safety of Billroth I and Billroth II reconstruction in distal gastrectomy for gastric cancer and short-term endoscopic findings.@*METHODS@#A retrospective cohort study was carried out. Clinical data of gastric adenocarcinoma patients who received distal subtotal gastrectomy with Billroth I or Billroth II reconstruction at Department 4 of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Peking University Cancer Hospital from January 2013 to July 2017 were collected retrospectively. Patients with stage IV gastric cancer, emergent operation, preoperative chemotherapy, combined organ resection and other malignancies were excluded. A total of 277 patients were enrolled in the study with 143 patients in the Billroth I group and 134 patients in the Billroth II group. The intra-operative conditions, postoperative early recovery, postoperative complications, and postoperative 1-year endoscopic findings were compared between the two groups. The normal distribution variables were analyzed by t test; the non-normal distribution variables were analyzed by Mann-Whitney U test; sort variables were compared between groups using the χ² test or Fisher's exact test.@*RESULTS@#In the Billroth I group, 93 (65.0%) cases were male, mean age was (58.1±10.9) years and body mass index was (23.3±3.2) kg/m. In the Billroth II group, 94 (70.1%) cases were male, mean age was (58.3±9.5) years and body mass index was (23.7±2.9) kg/m. There were no significant differences in baseline data between in the two groups (all P>0.05). As compared to the Billroth I group, the Billroth II group had significantly longer operation time [mean (230.7±44.6) minutes vs. (210.3±41.4) minutes, t=3.935, P0.05). In the Billroth I group, 1 case developed anastomotic bleeding, 3 cases anastomotic leakage, 4 cases emptying disorder, 4 cases peritoneal cavity infection, and all of them healed after conservative treatment. In the Billroth II group, 1 case developed anastomotic bleeding, 1 case peritoneal cavity bleeding, 3 cases emptying disorder, 3 cases peritoneal cavity infection, and all of them healed after conservative treatment, while 1 case developed postoperative duodenal stump leakage and underwent a second operation. Morbidity of postoperative complication was 8.4% (12/143) and 6.7% (9/134) in the Billroth I group and Billroth II group respectively (χ²=0.277, P=0.599) without statistically significant difference. Postoperative one-year endoscopy was performed in 78 cases of the Billroth I group and 57 cases of the Billroth II group. Endoscopic findings revealed that ratio of food retention [21.8% (17/78) vs. 33.3% (19/57), χ²= 2.242, P=0.134], ratio of residual gastritis [48.7% (38/78) vs. 47.4% (27/57), χ²=0.024, P=0.877] and incidence of bile reflux [12.8% (10/78) vs. 10.5% (6/57), χ²=0.166, P=0.684] were not significantly different between two groups.@*CONCLUSIONS@#For distal gastrectomy, Billroth I reconstruction is easier to operate, while Billroth II reconstruction presents faster recovery of gastrointestinal function and shorter hospital stay. The morbidity of postoperative complication and short-term endoscopic findings between two groups are comparable.

A decade′s review for the foundation, establishment and development of the Department of Minimally Invasive Gastrointestinal Surgery in Peking University Cancer Hospital / 中华胃肠外科杂志

Department of minimally invasive gastrointestinal surgery in Peking University Cancer Hospital (also named as Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery IV) was established on April 7, 2009. Up to now, ten years have passed since its foundation. As the first department built in specialized cancer hospital, which mainly focuses on laparoscopic surgery, its foundation and development has a very important historical and practical significance in the development of surgical oncology in China. Reviewing the rapid growth of the Department of Minimally Invasive Gastrointestinal Surgery over the past decade, on the one hand, it has benefited from the opportunities of the times and the support of leaders in Peking University Cancer Hospital at that time. More importantly, the progress owes to the pioneering Professor Su Xiangqian, who is brave and innovative, with indomitable spirit and advanced management philosophy. With rigorous training, the ability of the team has been steadily enhanced, the competitiveness has been gradually improved, and the development direction which focuses on laparoscopic gastric cancer surgery and laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery has been established. Now, the Department of Minimally Invasive Gastrointestinal Surgery has become a well-known domestic gastrointestinal tumor center. In the past ten years, under the leadership of Professor Su Xiangqian, the growth of this team is innovative and comprehensive: (1) Introduce the internationally advanced Baldrige medical service management framework, and propose the "management by principle" concept to improve the core competitiveness of the department; (2) Establish an academic brand by laparoscopic standardized surgery training courses for gastrointestinal tumors, promote cooperation and exchange at home and abroad, and participate in international multi-center clinical research projects; (3) Adhere to the "formation of a research-oriented department, conducting clinical and basic research simultaneously" as the development direction; (4) Stick to the core development concept of team building and cultivate professional talents. Looking forward to the future, our team will not forget the beginning of the heart, and move forward! In the next ten years, we will break through ourselves and continue to pursue the higher level!

Application of indocyanine green labeled near-infrared fluorescence laparoscopy in gastric cancer / 中华肿瘤杂志

Objective@#With the development of laparoscopic surgery technique, the concept of minimally invasive surgery has gradually gained popularity. Laparoscopic minimally invasive technique applied in the treatment of gastric cancer has been recognized by surgeons. In recent years, the indocyanine green labeled near-infrared fluorescence laparoscopic technique has been gradually applied to the surgical treatment of gastric cancer. This technique overcomes the drawbacks of tactile lack of laparoscopic surgery and makes the laparoscopic surgery of gastric cancer more precise and minimally invasive. This article introduces the injection method of indocyanine green and discusses the application of fluorescent laparoscopy in gastric cancer surgery, including intraoperative tumor localization of early gastric cancer, sentinel lymph node biopsy, lymph node navigation of advanced gastric cancer, digestive tract reconstruction and gastrointestinal blood perfusion assessment during the procedure.

Application of laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy in elderly patients ≥65 years with gastric cancer / 中华胃肠外科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate the safety and feasibility of laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy in gastric cancer patients over 65 years old.@*METHODS@#Clinical, pathological and follow-up data of 188 gastric cancer patients who underwent laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy at Department IV of Gastrointestinal Cancer Center, Peking University Cancer Hospital, from April 2009 to December 2016 were collected for a retrospective cohort study.@*INCLUSION CRITERIA@#ECOG performance score 0-1; preoperative gastroscopy discovered gastric masses, and pathological biopsy confirmed adenocarcinoma; distant metastases were excluded by image examination; preoperative cardiopulmonary function was normal; preoperative blood routine test, liver and renal function, and coagulation function were normal; laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy was performed.@*EXCLUSION CRITERIA@#intraoperative laparoscopic exploration indicated abdominal and/or pelvic peritoneal metastasis; free cancer cells in peritoneal cavity; conversion to laparotomy during laparoscopic surgery. Patients were divided by age into 2 groups, ≥ 65 years old group(59 cases) and 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that preoperative comorbidities(OR=0.223, 95%CI:0.053 to 0.944, P=0.041) was an independent risk factor for postoperative complications in patients aged ≥ 65 years old undergoing laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy. The median survival time was 21.3 months and the overall 5-year survival rate was 50.0%. The 5-year survival rate was 45.5% and 57.5% in patients aged ≥ 65 and < 65 years, respectively, and there was no significant difference(P=0.205).@*CONCLUSIONS@#Laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy is safe and effective in the treatment of gastric cancer patients ≥ 65 years old. Age is not a contraindication of laparoscopy-assisted total gastrectomy.

Comparison of the application between circular stapler and linear stapler in Billroth II( anastomosis of distal gastrectomy / 中华胃肠外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To compare the safety and effectiveness of circular stapler and linear stapler in Billroth II( anastomosis following distal gastrectomy for gastric cancer patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinical data of gastric adenocarcinoma patients who received distal gastrectomy with Billroth II( anastomosis at Ward IIII( of Gastrointestinal Cancer Center of Peking University Cancer Hospital from January 2013 to April 2017 were collected retrospectively.</p><p><b>EXCLUSION CRITERIA</b>(1) patients identified as stage IIII( gastric cancer by preoperative clinical and postoperative pathological staging. (2) patients undergoing emergency operation due to perforation, obstruction, or bleeding of digestive tract. (3) patients receiving chemotherapy before operation. (4) patients undergoing combined organ resection due to tumor involving other organs. (5) patients complicating with other malignancies. A total of 116 cases were enrolled and divided into circular stapler (CS, 61 cases) group and linear stapler (LS, 55 cases) group according to the application of mechanical stapler. Clinicopathological characteristics, operative conditions and postoperative recovery were compared between two groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Differences in baseline data, such as tumor size, Lauren classification, differentiation grade, and pathologic stage, between two groups were not statistically significant (all P>0.05). The mean operative time (230 min vs. 234 min), median intra-operative blood loss (50.0 ml vs. 50.0 ml), median number of harvested lymph node (28.0 vs. 26.0) and median number of positive lymph node (1.0 vs. 2.0) between LS group and CS group were not significantly different (all P>0.05) As compared to CS group, LS group presented shorter median time to the first flatus (3.0 days vs. 4.0 days, P=0.038), shorter median time to the first liquid diet (7.0 days vs. 8.0 days, P=0.000), shorter median time to remove the first abdominal drainage tube (7.0 days vs. 9.0 days, P=0.000) and shorter median time of postoperative hospital stay (8.0 days vs. 10.0 days, P=0.000). The morbidity of postoperative complication was 11.5% and 1.8% in CS group and LS group respectively without significant difference (P=0.092). In CS group, 1 case (1.6%) developed anastomotic hemorrhage, 3 cases (4.9%) gastric emptying disorder and 3 cases (4.9%) abdominal infection after operation, who all were cured by conservative treatment without duodenal stump fistula and re-operation. In LS group, only 1 case (1.8%) developed duodenal stump fistula and was cured by re-operation.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>In distal gastrectomy with Billroth II( anastomosis for gastric cancer, the application of linear stapler results in faster recovery of gastrointestinal function and shorter hospital stay, indicating more advantages.</p>

Efficacy of laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy for elderly patients with gastric cancer / 中国肿瘤临床

Objective: This study aimed to compare the short- and long-term outcomes of laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy between elderly and non-elderly patients with gastric cancer. Methods: A total of 219 patients who underwent laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy in the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery IV, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute from April 2009 to October 2013 were included in this retrospective study. All patients were divided into elderly (≥65 years) and non- elderly (0.05). The mean time to first ambulation in elderly group was 2.2±2.3d while first ambulation time in the non-elderly group was 1.4±1.3d,which showed significant difference between the two groups (P 0.05) as well as 3-year disease-free survival and overall survival (P>0.05). However, the elderly patients withpostoperative morbidities experienced significantly poorer overall survival rate than non-elderly patients (44.5％ vs. 70.5％, P<0.05). Conclusion: Laparoscopy-assisted gastrectomy can be safely and successfully performed in an elderly population with acceptable short- and long-term outcomes.Enhanced perioperative treatment is necessary to improve postoperative outcomes.

Predictive value of combination detection of tissue Pgp1 expression and preoperative serum CEA level for colorectal cancer / 中华胃肠外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the predictive value of combination detection of Pgp1 expression in cancer tissue and serum CEA level for the prognosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinicopathological data, complete 5-year follow-up data and CRC tissue samples of 153 CRC patients with stage I( to II( tumor undergoing radical operation in our department from January 2004 to August 2006 were retrospectively collected. Immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the expression level of Pgp1. The combined evaluation of staining intensity and positive cell percentage was performed to determine the expression level of Pgp1. Pgp1 staining (-) and (+) was defined as low expression; and staining (++) and (+++) as high expression. Electrochemiluminescence immunoassay was used to detect the level of serum CEA. CEA > 5 μg/L was defined as positive. χand Fisher's exact test were performed to analyze the association of Pgp1 expression with CEA level and clinicopathological variables. Moreover, Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze the survival. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to evaluate the roles of Pgp1 expression combined with serum CEA level in prognosis prediction.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Of 153 patients, 105 were males and 48 females with mean age of 59 (27 to 90) years; 41 cases were rectal cancer, and 112 cases colon cancer; 23 patients were TNM stage I( tumor, and 130 patients stage II( tumor; median follow-up time was 64 months; 30 cases were dead. Positive rate of Pgp1 expression in colorectal cancer tissues was 66.0%(101/153). The expression of Pgp1 was associated with gender, tumor location, and survival during the follow-up (all P<0.05). The preoperative positive rate of serum CEA was 28.1% (43/153). The preoperative serum CEA level was associated with tumor recurrence and survival (all P<0.05). Kaplan-Meier analysis showed the overall 5-year survival rate was 81.7%. The 5-year survival rate of patients with high expression of Pgp1 was 88.1%, which was significantly higher than 69.2% of those with low expression of Pgp1(P=0.003). The 5-year survival rate of patients with preoperative positive serum CEA was 72.1%, which was significantly lower than 86.1% of those with preoperative negative serum CEA(P=0.023). Furthermore, the 5-year survival rate of patients with negative Pgp1 plus positive CEA was 66.7%, which was significantly lower than 91.0% of those with positive Pgp1 plus negative CEA(P=0.002). Univariate analysis showed that gender, Pgp1 expression level, preoperative serum CEA level, and Pgp1 combined with CEA were significantly associated with the prognosis of patients(all P<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that Pgp1 expression was an independent prognostic factor of CRC [HR(95%CI:1.261 to 64.224), P=0.028].</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Low expression of Pgp1 in cancer tissue indicates poor prognosis in patients with stage I( and II( tumor. Combination detection of Pgp1 expression and serum CEA can be applied to predict the prognosis of patients with stage I( and II( colorectal cancer.</p>

Prevention and treatment for complications in the application of new technology for stomach cancers / 中华胃肠外科杂志

With the rapid advancement of minimally invasive new technology, laparoscopic surgery and robotic surgery are now regarded as the main direction in surgical treatment for stomach cancers. Recent evidence has confirmed the safety and feasibility of laparoscopic surgery for early gastric cancer and advanced gastric cancer. However, gastrointestinal surgeons should pay more attention to complications after laparoscopic gastrectomy because of rich blood supply, complex tissue layers and lymph node metastasis. Common complications related to laparoscopic surgery are associated with laparoscopic instruments and operating, intra-abdominal bleeding, anastomotic leakage, anastomotic bleeding, pancreatic leakage, duodenal stump leakage, lymphatic leakage and so on. This article mainly focuses on the causes, prevention and treatment of the complications after laparoscopic gastrectomy.

Effects of mini-probe endoscopic ultrasonography for therapeutic decision-making in early gastric cancer prior to operation / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To evaluate the clinical value of mini-probe endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) in determin-ing the therapeutic strategy for early gastric cancer (EGC) before surgery. Methods 151 EGC lesions were enrolled in the study. The accuracy of EUS-determined depths were compared with histopathologic results, and the effects of EUS-based therapeutic decision-making plan was evaluated. Results The overall accuracy of EUS-determined T staging was 74.8%. Multivariate analysis revealed that tumor size larger than 2 cm, endoscopic ulceration and tumor located at upper two thirds of the stomach were associated with EUS misdiagnosis ( < 0.05). 75.3 %(107/142) of the EGC patients received proper treatment according to EUS-based therapeutic selection. Conclusions Mini-probe EUS is a useful utility in T-staging and therapeutic strategy selection for EGC. Special attention should be paid when tumor diameter exceeds 2 cm, co-existence of ulcer or tumor located in the upper two-thirds portion of the stomach.

Analysis of clinicopathological factors for node-negative colon cancer patients with synchronous liver metastases / 中国肿瘤临床

Objective:To explore the clinicopathological factors in node-negative colon cancer patients with synchronous liver metasta-ses and to improve the efficiency of follow-up and rate of early diagnosis for high-risk patients. Methods:Clinical data of 140 colon cancer patients who underwent operation from January 2008 to December 2012 in Beijing Cancer Hospital were analyzed. The high-risk variables associated with synchronous liver metastases were subjected to univariate and multivariate analyses. Results:Synchro-nous liver metastases developed in 13 out of the 140 node-negative colon cancer patients. Eight out of those 13 patients (61.5%) ex-hibited complications with incomplete colon obstruction, and 6 cases underwent surgical treatment for both primary tumor and liver metastases. Both univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that preoperative abnormal serum carcinoembryonic antigen levels (≥5 ng/mL) and vascular invasion were significant independent risk factors for synchronous liver metastases. Conclusion:The risk of syn-chronous liver metastases for colon cancer patients with negative lymph node is slightly high. Vascular invasion and abnormal preoper-ative CEA levels are significant independent risk factors for synchronous liver metastases. Specific examination of livers is necessary for the special cohort at the time of diagnosis or after operation to avoid misdiagnosis.

Expression of NF-E1b in colorectal cancer tissues and its clinical significance / 中华胃肠外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the expression of NF-E1b in colorectal cancer tissues and its association with various clinicopathological parameters and prognosis of the patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinicopathological and follow-up data of 168 colorectal cancer patients undergoing radical operation at Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Peking University Cancer Hospital and Institute from 2005 to 2012 were retrospectively analyzed, including 96 males and 72 females, with mean age of (57.8±11.2) years. The expression of NF-E1b protein was detected in samples of 168 resected colorectal cancer tissues and 45 adjacent non-cancerous tissues by immunohistochemistry. The expression rates of NF-E1b were compared among different clinicopathological features. Moreover, the association between NF-E1b expression and prognosis was analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The expression of NF-E1b protein located mainly in cytoplasm. Positive rate of NF-E1b expression in adjacent non-cancerous tissues was 17.8% (8/45), which was obviously lower than 67.9%(114/168) of cancer tissues with significant difference (χ(2)=36.376, P=0.000). Clinicopathological parameters analysis suggested that the expression level of NF-E1b in cancer tissues was associated with age (χ(2)=4.862, P=0.030), TNM staging (χ(2)=10.969, P=0.002), lymph node metastasis (χ(2)=7.390, P=0.008) and distal metastasis (χ(2)=17.887, P=0.000). The median follow-up time was 23(1-77) months. The overall 5-year survival of this cohort was 33.3%. Colorectal cancer patients with high levels of NF-E1b expression showed a worse overall survival compared with those with low levels of NF-E1b expression (18.4% vs. 56.6%, P=0.000). Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that tumor location (P=0.034), tumor size (P=0.003), TNM staging (P=0.000), depth of tumor invasion (P=0.009), lymph node metastasis (P=0.000), distant metastasis (P=0.000) and NF-E1b expression level (P=0.001) were associated with the prognosis of colorectal cancer patients. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that tumor diameter >4 cm (HR=2.193,95% CI:1.334 to 3.603, P=0.002), distant metastasis (HR=2.064, 95% CI:1.160 to 3.672, P=0.014) and high NF-E1b expression (HR=1.994,95% CI:1.068 to 3.724, P=0.030) were independent risk factors of predicting poor prognosis of colorectal cancer patients.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>NF-E1b expression up-regulates in colorectal cancer tissues. High expression of NF-E1b is associated with poor prognosis of colorectal cancer patients. NF-E1b may serve as a potential target of the treatment for colorectal cancer.</p>

Efficacy of endoscopic submucosal dissection in elderly patients with early gastric cancer / 中华消化外科杂志

Objective To investigate the safety and efficacy of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in elderly patients (age ≥ 65 years) with early gastric cancer.Methods The retrospective cohort study was adopted.The clinical data of 145 patients with early gastric cancer who underwent ESD at the Peking University Cancer Hospital between January 2011 and June 2014 were collected.Of 145 patients,57 (age≥65 years) were allocated into the elderly group and 88 (age ＜ 65 years) were allocated into the non-elderly group.ESD was performed to all the patients after the multidisciplinary discussion and evaluation.Observation indicators included operation time,volume of intraoperative blood loss,duration of hospital stay,complications,integrity of resected specimens,negative resection margin,tumor cure and follow-up (survival,tumor recurrence and metastasis).The follow-up using outpatient examination and telephone interview was performed to detect survival of patients and tumor recurrence and metastasis till June 2015.Measurement data with normal distribution were presented as x ± s and comparison between groups was analyzed using t test.Measurement data with skewed distribution were presented as M (range) and comparison between groups was analyzed using nonparametric U test.Count data were analyzed using the chi-square test.Results Operation time,volume of intraoperative blood loss,duration of hospital stay,numbers of patients with postoperative perforation,bleeding,en bloc resection of tumor,piecemeal resection of tumor,negative resection margins,positive resection margins,curative resection,extended curative resection and non-curative resection were 100 minutes (range,20-470 minutes),25 mL (range,5-200 mL),5 days (range,2-10 days),1,2,52,5,50,7,30,17,10 in the elderly group and 110 minutes (range,25-480 minutes),25 mL (range,5-600 mL),4 days (range,2-29 days),3,3,85,3,83,5,47,24,17 in the non-elderly group,respectively,with no significant differences between the 2 groups (U =2 451.000,2 183.500,2 116.500,x2=1.544,1.018,1.210,0.142,P ＞ 0.05).Patients with complications were improved after symptomatic treatment.Of 145 patients,135 were followed up for a median time of 26 months (range,12-53 months).Tumor recurrence rates in the elderly and non-elderly groups were 1.8％ (1/57) and 2.3％ (2/88),showing no significant difference between the 2 groups (x2=0.000,P ＞ 0.05).No tumor recurrence and metastasis and death were occurred in other patients.Conclusion ESD is safe and feasible in the treatment of elderly patients with early gastric cancer,and it is equivalent to short-and long-term efficacies of ESD in non-elderly patients.

Clinical efficacy of laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer / 中华消化外科杂志

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer.Methods The retrospective cohort study was adopted.The clinical data of 210 patients with gastric cancer who underwent laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy at the Peking University Cancer Hospital between May 2009 and December 2012 were collected.Fifty-two,43 and 115 patients were respectively detected in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ of postoperative pathological stage.Laparoscopy-assisted radical distal,proximal and total gastrectomies were selectively performed according to the location and extent of tumors.(1) Overall treatment indicators were observed,including surgical procedure,with or without conversion to open surgery,operation time,volumes of intraoperative blood loss and transfusion,number of lymph node dissected,time to anal exsufflation,duration of hospital stay,occurrence of complications,radical degree of tumors of pathological examination.(2) Other indicators were observed,including pathological features of patients in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ [gender,age,body mass index (BMI),scores of American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA),medicinal complication,location of tumors,degree of tumor differentiation and with or without vascular tumor thrombi],intraoperative and postoperative situations (surgical procedure,conversion to open surgery,operation time,volumes of intraoperative blood loss and transfusion,number of lymph node dissected,time to anal exsufflation,duration of hospital stay and radical degree of tumors),postoperative complications,reoperation,death within postoperative day 30 and during follow-up,3-and 5-year survival rates.(3) Evaluation criteria:stages and classification of tumors were evaluated according to the tumor node metastasis (TNM) classification of malignant tumours (Seventh Edition) published by American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) and Union for International Cancer Control (UICC).Severity of complications was evaluated according to Clavien-Dindo classification.Patients were followed up by outpatient examination,telephone interview and correspondence once every half a year up to December 31,2015,abdominal / pelvic CT,chest X-ray and blood test were performed once every half a year within 2 years and once every year within 2-5 years postoperatively,and gastroscopy was performed once every year.Overall survival time was counted from operation date to end of follow-up or time of death.Measurement data with normal distribution were presented as x ± s and comparison between groups was analyzed using the ANOVA.Measurement data with skewed distribution were presented as M (range) and comparison between groups was analyzed using nonparametric test.Comparisons of count data were analyzed using the chisquare test.Survival curve was drawn by the Kaplan-Meier method,and survival analysis was done using the Logrank test.Results (1) Overall treatment:all the 210 patients underwent successful radical gastrectomy,including 100 undergoing distal gastrectomy,35 undergoing proximal gastrectomy and 75 undergoing total gastrectomy.There were 198 patients undergoing radical gastrectomy and 12 patients converted to open surgery.Operation time,volume of intraoperative blood loss,number of patients with blood transfusion and number of lymph node dissected were (258 ± 54) minutes,(103 ± 86) mL,19 and 29 ± 12,respectively.Postoperative recovery:time to anal exsufflation and duration of hospital stay were (3.8 ± 0.9) days and (17 ± 7) days.Fortyfive patients had postoperative complications and 2 were dead within 30 days postoperatively.R0 and R1 resections were respectively applied to 209 and 1 patients.(2) Comparisons among the patients with the different pathological stage:numbers of patients in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ were 9,17 and 36 with tumor located in the upper stomach,3,9 and 22 with tumor located in the middle stomach,40,16 and 47 with tumor located in the lower stomach,0,1 and 10 with tumor located in the cross-region stomach,30,23 and 23 in G1 and G2 of tumor differentiation,21,19 and 92 in G3 and G4 of tumor differentiation,7,13 and 69 with vascular tumor thrombi,respectively,with significant differences in above indicators among the patients in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ (x2 =25.990,32.928,35.027,P ＜ 0.05).(3) Intra-and post-operative comparisons among the patients with the different pathological stage:numbers of patients in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲl were respectively 40,20 and 40 with distal gastrectomy,3,8 and 24 with proximal gastrectomy,9,15 and 51 with total gastrectomy,and number of lymph node dissected were 26 ± 9,29 ± 13 and 31 ± 12 in patients with stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ,showing significant differences in above indicators among the patients in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ (x2 =25.730,F =4.336,P ＜ 0.05).(4) Numbers of patients with postoperative overall complications were 11,8 and 26 in stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ,showing no significant difference (x2 =0.301,P ＞ 0.05).(5) Of 210 patients,203 were followed up for a median time of 43 months (range,1-80 months) with a follow-up rate of 96.67％ (203/210).Sixty-eight patients were dead till the end of follow-up,including 60 died of recurrence of tumor,2 died of surgical complications and 6 died of other causes.Postoperative 3-,5-year overall survival rates were 96.1％,87.8％,62.4％ and 92.9％,77.5％,52.7％ in patients with stage Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ,respectively,with a significant difference (x2 =29.071,P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy for advanced gastric cancer is at least equivalent to early gastric cancer in the safety,with the satisfactory long-term outcomes.

Predictive value of preoperative detection of CEA and CA199 for prognosis in patients with stage II-III colorectal cancer / 中华胃肠外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the predictive value of preoperative detection of CEA and CA199 for prognosis in patients with stage II-III colorectal cancer (CRC).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinicopathological and follow-up data of 266 patients with stage II-III colorectal cancer confirmed by pathology and undergoing radical resection in our department from 2004 to 2006 were retrospectively analyzed. The 5-year overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) between normal CEA patients and increased CEA ones, and normal CA199 patients and increased CA199 ones were compared respectively. Moreover, the risk factors of OS and DFS were examined.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among these 266 patients, 119 (44.7%) had preoperative elevated CEA, and 74 (27.8%) had increased CA199. The median follow-up time was 63 months. Kaplan-Meier survival curves indicated that patients with elevated preoperative CEA had worse 5-year OS (54.6% vs. 72.8%, P=0.001) and DFS (75.2% vs. 83.3%, P=0.042) than those with normal CEA respectively. Meanwhile, patients with elevated CA199 had worse OS (45.9% vs. 71.9%, P=0.000) and DFS (74.2% vs. 81.8%, P=0.047) than those with normal CA199 respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that male (HR=3.016, 95% CI: 1.536-5.919, P=0.001), lymph node metastasis (HR=2.278, 95% CI: 1.272-4.081, P=0.006), and preoperative elevated CEA (HR=1.794, 95%CI: 1.022-3.149, P=0.042) were independent prognostic factors of DFS. While vascular thrombosis (HR=2.041, 95% CI: 1.294-3.221, P=0.002), lymph node metastasis (HR=2.480, 95% CI:1.548-3.972, P=0.000), and preoperative elevated CA199 (HR=2.145, 95% CI:1.414-3.254, P=0.000) were independent prognostic factors of OS in patients with stage II-III CRC.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Combined detection of preoperative CEA and CA199 can be used in evaluating the prognosis of patients with stage II-III CRC.</p>

Application of endoscopic submucosal dissection in treatment of early gastric cancer / 北京大学学报(医学版)

Objective:To evaluate the clinical outcomes of endoscopic submucosal dissection ( ESD ) for early gastric cancer ( EGC) in a single center in China. Methods:We performed a retrospective ana-lysis of the patients with single EGC lesion who received ESD in Peking University Cancer Hospital from January 2011 to December 2013. Their clinicopathologic data, resectability, curability, complications and follow-up data were assessed. Results:A total of 116 patients were enrolled in the study. The patients in-cluded 88 men and 28 women, with a median age of 63 years ( range:25-80 years) . The post-operative histology of the lesions included 28 (24. 1%) high grade intraepithelial neoplasia, 35 (30. 2%) well differentiated adenocarcinoma, 35 (30. 2%) moderated differentiated adenocarcinoma and 18 (15. 5%) poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma. Of all the lesions, 75. 0% (87/116) were confined into mucosa, 15. 5% (18/116) invaded SM1 ( <500 μm from the muscularis mucosae) and 9. 5% (11/116) inva-ded SM2 (≥500 μm from the muscularis mucosae). The mean tumor size was (1. 49 ± 0. 96) cm, and the rate of ulceration was 14. 7% (17/116). The en bloc resection rates were 96. 7% (111/116), com-plete resection rates were 93. 1% (108/116) and curative resection rates were 77. 6% (90/116). Ac-cording to the curability, 62 (53. 4%) cases were classified into the standard curative resection ( sCR) group, 28 (24. 2%) into the expanded curative resection ( eCR) group and 26 (22. 4%) into thenon-curative resection ( nCR) group. The mean tumor size of the sCR group was smaller than that of the eCR and nCR group (t= -4. 121, P<0. 001 and t= -3. 420, P=0. 001). In the nCR group, the portion of type 0-Ⅲlesion and ulceration were significantly higher (χ2 =10 . 287 , P=0 . 006 andχ2 =17 . 737 , P<0. 001). In multivariate analysis, EGC with ulceration and submucosal invasion were the risk factors for non-curative resection ( OR=6 . 634 , P=0 . 006 and OR=12 . 735 , P<0 . 001 ) . The ESD-related complications included 4 ( 3. 4%) post-operative bleeding, 3 ( 2. 6%) intra-operative perforation, 2 (1. 7%) cardiac stenosis and 1 (0. 9%) heart failure. In the study, 106 of the 116 patients received periodic follow-up, during a median follow-up of 22 months(12 -47 months), Local tumor recurrence developed in 1 patient of the eCR group 8 months post the ESD. Conclusion:ESD is a safe and feasible option for EGC in China, ulceration and submucosal invasion are associated with non-curative resection, and post-operative bleeding and intra-operative perforation should be concerned as the main complica-tions.

Evaluation of POSSUM scoring system in radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer patients / 中华胃肠外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To assess the accuracy of POSSUM scoring system in predicting surgical risk in patients with gastric cancer, and provide a feasible reference to clinical decision.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinical data of 310 patients suffered from gastric cancer were analyzed retrospectively, including 278 cases in laparoscopic group and 32 cases in open group, between April 2009 and April 2014 in the department of minimally invasive gastrointestinal surgery, Peking University Cancer Hospital. Preoperative physiology score(PS), operative score(OS) and predictive morbidity rate(R1) were calculated according to POSSUM scoring system, which were used to assess the accuracy of R1 in open group. Two different scoring systems (R1traditional and R1modified according to adjustment of operative excision area) were applied in the laparoscopic group, and were compared for predicting the accuracy of R1 in the laparoscopic group. Besides, postoperative morbidities were compared between the two groups of patients with different preoperative physiological status(low risk group: PS≤20, high risk group: PS≥21).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The predictive accuracy for open group patients were acceptable, and the ratio of expected and observed(E/O) was 1.2. In the laparoscopic group, the R1modified was 29.1%, and observed morbidity was 23.4% with an E/O of 1.2. The R1modified was more accurate than R1traditional(38.5%, E/O traditional was 1.6). Both modified and traditional POSSUM scoring system predicted well in low risk patients in the laparoscopic and open group, and E/O was 1.0. However, it overestimated morbidities in median and high risk patients for both laparoscopic and open group. E/O was 1.6, and 1.9 in laparoscopic group, as well as 1.2 and 1.3 in open group. For patients in poor preoperative physiological status(PS≥21), the morbidity in laparoscopic group was lower than that in open group(27.3% vs. 5/7, P=0.020).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Modified POSSUM scoring system predicted morbidity more accurately in the laparoscopic group than traditional system. As for patients in poor preoperative physiological status, laparoscopic assisted gastrectomy procedure might reduce postoperative morbidities.</p>

Clinical efficacy of laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy in elderly patients with gastric cancer / 中华胃肠外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the clinical efficacy of laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy in elderly patients with gastric cancer.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinical data of 214 patients with gastric cancer were analyzed retrospectively, who underwent laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy in the Department of Minimally Invasive Gastrointestinal Surgery at Beijing Cancer Hospital between May 2009 and December 2012. The patients were divided into two groups, consisting of elderly group(age ≥70 years old, n=53) and non-elderly group(age <70 years old, n=161). The operative procedure and postoperative recovery were compared between the two groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Elderly group had a worse ASA score as compared to non-elderly group with significant difference(P<0.05). Among the elderly, the incidences of concomitant diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes, were significantly higher. No significant differences were observed in terms of duration of operation, blood loss, blood transfusion rate, conversion to laparotomy, time to first flatus and postoperative hospital stay between the two groups(P>0.05). The mean number of retrieved lymph nodes in elderly group was less than that of non-elderly group (26.4±9.7 vs. 30.0±12.4), but whose difference was not significant(P>0.05). There were no significant differences between two groups with respect to postoperative complications (30.2% vs. 19.9%, P>0.05) and surgery-related complications(18.9% vs. 18.0%, P>0.05), but the incidence of medical complications was higher in elderly group (11.3% vs. 1.9%, P<0.05). Furthermore, the perioperative mortality was 1.9% and 0.6% respectively in elderly and non-elderly groups without significant difference(P>0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Associated with more concomitant diseases, the elderly had higher risk of medical complications after operation, while laparoscopy-assisted radical gastrectomy does not increase the risk of surgery-related complications in elderly patients.</p>