Therapy response monitoring in blood plasma from esophageal adenocarcinoma patients using cell-free DNA methylation profiling.

Esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) is an aggressive cancer characterized by a high risk of relapse post-surgery. Current follow-up methods (serum carcinoembryonic antigen detection and PET-CT) lack sensitivity and reliability, necessitating a novel approach. Analyzing cell-free DNA (cfDNA) from blood plasma emerges as a promising avenue.

Early postoperative systemic inflammatory response as predictor of anastomotic leakage after esophagectomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background And Purpose: Postesophagectomy anastomotic leakage occurs in up to 16% of patients and is the main cause of morbidity and mortality. The leak severity is determined by the extent of contamination and the degree of sepsis, both of which are related to the time from onset to treatment. Early prediction based on inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, white blood cell counts, albumin levels, and combined Noble-Underwood (NUn) scores can guide early management.

Outcomes after Surgical Treatment of Oesophagogastric Cancer with Synchronous Liver Metastases: A Multicentre Retrospective Cohort Study.

Approximately 10-12% of patients with oesophageal or gastric cancer (OGC) present with oligometastatic disease at diagnosis. It remains unclear if there is a role for radical surgery in these patients. We aimed to assess the outcomes of OGC patients who underwent simultaneous treatment for the primary tumour and synchronous liver metastases.

Systemic Inflammatory Response and the Noble and Underwood (NUn) Score as Early Predictors of Anastomotic Leakage after Esophageal Reconstructive Surgery.

Anastomotic leakage (AL) remains the main cause of post-esophagectomy morbidity and mortality. Early detection can avoid sepsis and reduce morbidity and mortality. This study evaluates the diagnostic accuracy of the Nun score and its components as early detectors of AL.

A Video-Based Procedure-Specific Competency Assessment Tool for Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy.

Importance: Minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) is a complex procedure with substantial learning curves. In other complex minimally invasive procedures, suboptimal surgical performance has convincingly been associated with less favorable patient outcomes as assessed by peer review of the surgical procedure.

Objective: To develop and validate a procedure-specific competency assessment tool (CAT) for MIE.

Global surgery education in Belgium: Student's knowledge, attitudes and exposure.

Purpose: Understanding how medical students perceive global surgery will be essential in strengthening the global surgery workforce by 2030. This study investigated the knowledge, attitudes and exposure of Belgian medical students towards global surgery and identified avenues for medical institutions to include meaningful educational opportunities.

Methods: An online survey was distributed to first to final year medical students across Belgian universities using social media.

Crowd-sourced and expert video assessment in minimally invasive esophagectomy.

Background: Video-based assessment by experts may structurally measure surgical performance using procedure-specific competency assessment tools (CATs). A CAT for minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE-CAT) was developed and validated previously. However, surgeon's time is scarce and video assessment is time-consuming and labor intensive.

Quality of Life after Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Introduction: Surgery remains essential in the curative treatment of esophageal cancer (EC), but it is known for its high morbidity and impaired health-related QoL. Minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) was introduced to reduce surgical trauma and improve QoL.

Methods: This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate long-term HRQoL after MIE in comparison with the general population.

Treatment of anastomotic leak after esophagectomy: insights of an international case vignette survey and expert discussions.

Anastomotic leak (AL) is a severe complication after esophagectomy. Clinical presentation of AL is diverse and there is large practice variation regarding treatment of AL. This study aimed to explore different AL treatment strategies and their underlying rationale.

Clinical utility of near-infrared perfusion assessment of the gastric tube during Ivor Lewis esophagectomy.

Background: Anastomotic leakage (AL) after Ivor Lewis esophagectomy with intrathoracic anastomosis carries a significant morbidity. Adequate perfusion of the gastric tube (GT) is an important predictor of anastomotic integrity. Recently, near infrared fluorescent (NIRF) imaging using indocyanine green (ICG) was introduced in clinical practice to evaluate tissue perfusion.

Technique of open and minimally invasive intrathoracic reconstruction following esophagectomy-an expert consensus based on a modified Delphi process.

Background: In recent years, minimally invasive Ivor Lewis (IL) esophagectomy with high intrathoracic anastomosis has emerged as surgical standard of care for esophageal cancer in expert centers. Alongside this process, many divergent technical aspects of this procedure have been devised in different centers. This study aims at achieving international consensus on the surgical steps of IL reconstruction using Delphi methodology.

The Effect of Postoperative Complications After Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy on Long-term Survival: An International Multicenter Cohort Study.

Background: Esophagectomy is a technically challenging procedure, associated with significant morbidity. The introduction of minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) has reduced postoperative morbidity.

Objective: Although the short-term effect on complications is increasingly being recognized, the impact on long-term survival remains unclear.

Radiation dose and pathological response in oesophageal cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery: a multi-institutional analysis.

To explore whether a higher neoadjuvant radiation dose increases the probability of a pathological complete response (pCR) or pathological major response (pMR) response in oesophageal cancer patients. Between 2000 and 2017, 1048 patients from four institutions were stratified according to prescribed neoadjuvant radiation doses of 36.0 Gy (13.

Near-infrared fluorescence guided esophageal reconstructive surgery: A systematic review.

Background: After an esophagectomy, the stomach is most commonly used to restore continuity of the upper gastrointestinal tract. These esophago-gastric anastomoses are prone to serious complications such as leakage associated with high morbidity and mortality. Graft perfusion is considered to be an important predictor for anastomotic integrity.

Articulated Instruments and 3D Visualization: A Synergy? Evaluation of Execution Time, Errors, and Visual Fatigue.

. The introduction of advanced endoscopic systems, such as the Storz Image1S and the Olympus Endoeye, heralds a new era of 3-dimensional (3D) visualization. The aim of this report is to provide a comprehensive overview of the neurophysiology of 3D view, its relevance in videoscopy, and to quantify the benefit of the new 3D technologies for both rigid and articulated instruments.

Quality of life of patients with a colonic interposition postoesophagectomy.

Objectives: After oesophagectomy, stomach grafts are most frequently used to restore intestinal continuity. Less frequently, a colonic graft is used. There is quite a large body of literature addressing the functional outcome after gastric pull-up, but little is known about the functional results of colonic interposition (CI).

Assessment of graft perfusion and oxygenation for improved outcome in esophageal cancer surgery: Protocol for a single-center prospective observational study.

Introduction: The main cause of anastomotic leakage (AL) is tissue hypoxia, which results from impaired perfusion of the pedicle stomach graft after esophageal reconstruction. Clinical judgment is unreliable in determining graft perfusion. Therefore, an objective, validated, and reproducible method is urgently needed.

Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Improve the Healing of Colonic Anastomoses Following High Dose of Irradiation Through Anti-Inflammatory and Angiogenic Processes.

Cancer patients treated with radiotherapy (RT) could develop severe late side effects that affect their quality of life. Long-term bowel complications after RT are mainly characterized by a transmural fibrosis that could lead to intestinal obstruction. Today, surgical resection is the only effective treatment.

Long-term survival after multimodality therapy including surgery for metastatic esophageal cancer.

Background And Objectives: Esophageal cancer (EC) remains an aggressive disease with a poor survival. Management of metastatic EC is limited to palliative chemotherapy (CT). Scientific contributions regarding the role of surgery are scarce and controversial.

Effect of abdominopelvic sepsis on cancer outcome in patients undergoing sphincter saving surgery for rectal cancer.

Background: In rectal cancer, the significance of abdominopelvic sepsis (APS) on metastatic tumor growth remains uncertain. We aimed to analyze the effect of abdominopelvic sepsis on long-term survival in patients undergoing restorative rectal cancer surgery.

Methods: Data were used from the Belgian PROCARE rectal cancer registry.

Functional outcome after Ivor Lewis esophagectomy for cancer.

Background: Little is known on functional outcome after Ivor Lewis esophagectomy (ILE) with intrathoracic anastomosis.

Methods: Patients who underwent ILE were identified from a prospective database. Clinicopathological data were retrieved and compared with functional outcome data based on patient self-assessment by a standard questionnaire.

Risk factors and consequences of anastomotic leakage after Ivor Lewis oesophagectomy†.

Objectives: Oesophageal carcinoma (EC) remains an aggressive disease. Despite extensive changes in therapeutic modalities, surgical resection remains the first choice therapy for curable oesophageal cancer patients. Anastomotic sites are prone to serious complications such as leakage, fistula, bleeding and stricture.

Tumor recurrence and in-field control after multimodality treatment of locally advanced esophageal cancer.

Purpose: Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy is used prior to surgery in curative treatment of esophageal cancer (EC). We evaluated the in-field control of this multimodal treatment by extraction of radiation dose parameters and determination of the spatial relation between tumor recurrence location(s) and radiation target volume (RTV).

Methods And Materials: Treatment consisted of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (5-FU and cisplatin) and radiotherapy (36 Gy) followed by Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy.