Background: This study aimed to compare the short- and long-term results of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and open surgery for primary early gastric cancer (EGC) at a single high-volume institution.
Methods: The clinicopathologic and survival data of primary gastric cancer patients who underwent a minimally invasive radical gastrectomy at Seoul National University Hospital from December 2003 to January 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. For comparison of short-term outcomes, the data for 1,112 patients who underwent a radical open gastrectomy from 2007 to 2011 were collected. For long-term outcome analysis, the data for 962 patients who underwent a radical open gastrectomy from 2004 to 2006 were collected. Because the application of MIS was limited to suspected EGC, the control groups were similarly limited to patients deemed to have EGC as shown by preoperative endoscopy, endoscopic ultrasound, or both.
Results: The review of our database identified 1,013 patients who had undergone MIS for gastric cancer. In the short-term outcome analysis, the MIS group showed statistically better results than the open surgery group in terms of postoperative hospital stay (8.7 vs. 11.3 days; p < 0.001), estimated blood loss (75.4 vs. 142.3 ml; p < 0.001), and overall complication rate (17.5 vs. 24.4 %; p < 0.001). In the subset analysis of total gastrectomy, the local complication rate was much higher in the MIS group than in the open surgery group. Both uni- and multivariate analyses showed that not only the surgical approach but also age, chronic liver disease, chronic renal disease, and additional organ resection had significant effects on complications. In the long-term outcome analysis, the two groups showed comparable disease-free survival rates.
Conclusions: The use of MIS for EGC showed a shorter operation time, a shorter postoperative hospital stay, and a lower overall complication rate than open surgery but a comparable disease-free survival rate. Total gastrectomy in the MIS group was associated with a higher complication rate than in the open group. Therefore, a new stable surgical technique needs to be established.