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Multimodality therapy for esophageal cancer, including chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery, is complicated by postsurgical morbidity and mortality from esophagectomy.
To evaluate a minimally invasive surgical approach aimed at reducing surgical complications, investigators conducted a multicenter, open-label, randomized, phase III trial in which conventional transthoracic open esophagectomy was compared with hybrid minimally invasive esophagectomy that combined a laparoscopic abdominal phase with an open thoracotomy. Of 207 patients treated, half had T3 disease (48%–51%) and most had node-positive disease (55%–58%), adenocarcinoma (55%–59%), and preoperative therapy (72%–75%).
Minimally invasive surgery reduced major complications du…