Role of repeat staging laparoscopy in locoregionally advanced gastric or gastroesophageal cancer after neoadjuvant therapy.
Academic Article
Overview
abstract
INTRODUCTION: Staging laparoscopy (SL) can identify occult, subradiographic metastatic (M1) disease in patients with gastric or gastroesophageal (G/GEJ) cancer who are unlikely to benefit from gastrectomy. The purpose of this study is to determine the yield of repeat SL following neoadjuvant therapy for G/GEJ adenocarcinoma after initial negative pretreatment SL. METHODS: Retrospective review of a prospective database identified patients with locoregionally advanced (T3-4Nany or TanyN+) G/GEJ adenocarcinoma who underwent pretreatment SL. The yield of repeat SL following neoadjuvant therapy was determined. RESULTS: From 1994 to 2010, 276 patients with locoregionally advanced G/GEJ adenocarcinoma were identified, of whom 244 proceeded to operation after neoadjuvant therapy, at a median time of 105 days. One hundred sixty-four patients (67 %) underwent repeat SL, and 80 patients (33 %) proceeded directly to laparotomy. Occult M1 disease was identified in 12 (7.3 %) and 6 (7.5 %) patients, respectively. In the repeat SL cohort, M1 disease was identified at laparoscopy in nine patients (5.5 %). M1 disease not identified by laparoscopy was discovered at laparotomy in three patients (1.8 %). The median follow-up for the study population was 31 months. For patients with M1 disease, median overall survival was 15 months, versus 41 months for patients resected without M1 disease (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Occult, subradiographic M1 disease develops in approximately 7 % of patients following neoadjuvant therapy for locoregionally advanced G/GEJ adenocarcinoma. These patients have poor prognosis, and repeat SL can be a valuable tool in selecting patients with locoregionally advanced G/GEJ tumors for potentially curative resection after neoadjuvant therapy.
