When Eastern Surgeons Meet Western Patients: A Pilot Study of Gastrectomy with Lymphadenectomy in Caucasian Patients at a Single Korean Institute

• Published in: Yonsei medical journal Vol. 57; no. 5; pp. 1294 - 1297
• Main Authors: Nakagawa, Masatoshi, Choi, Yoon Young, An, Ji Yeong, Seo, Sang Hyuk, Shin, Hyun Beak, Bang, Hui-Jae, Li, Shuangxi, Kim, Hyung-Il, Cheong, Jae-Ho, Hyung, Woo Jin, Noh, Sung Hoon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) Yonsei University College of Medicine 01.09.2016; 연세대학교의과대학
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Case Report; European Continental Ancestry Group; Female; Gastrectomy - adverse effects; Humans; Length of Stay; Lymph Node Excision - adverse effects; Male; Middle Aged; Operative Time; Patients; Pilot Projects; Republic of Korea; Safety; Stomach Neoplasms - pathology; Stomach Neoplasms - surgery; Surgeons; 의학일반; gastrectomy; Gastric cancer; Caucasians; lymphadenectomy
• ISSN: 0513-5796; 1976-2437
• DOI: 10.3349/ymj.2016.57.5.1294

East Asian surgeons generally report lower morbidity and mortality rates for gastrectomy with D2 lymphadenectomy than do surgeons in Western countries; however, the disparity remains unexplained. The aim of this article was to determine the feasibility and safety regarding cases in which East Asian surgeons perform such procedures in Caucasian patients (CPs). Twelve CPs underwent gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy for gastric cancer at Yonsei University Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea between June 2011 and April 2014. Procedures performed included total gastrectomy (7 of 12, 58%), distal gastrectomy (4 of 12, 33%), and completion total gastrectomy (1 of 12, 8%). Nine patients (75%) underwent D2 lymphadenectomy, and D1+ lymphadenectomy was performed in three others (25%). In four patients (33%), combined resections were carried out. The median values of surgical parameters were as follows: operative time, 266.5 min (range, 120-586 min); estimated blood loss, 90 mL (range, 37-350 mL); retrieved lymph node count, 37.5 (range, 22-63); and postoperative hospital stay, 13.7 days (range, 5-63 days). No mortality was encountered, although two patients (17%) experienced complications (both Clavien-Dindo classification grade IIIa anastomotic leakages), which were successfully managed by conservative treatment. In the hands of East Asian surgeons, mortality and short-term morbidity appears to be acceptably low in CPs subjected to gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy for gastric cancer.