Introduction: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for early gastric cancer (EGC) is well accepted. However, its adaptation for elderly patients is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the prognosis and long-term outcomes of ESD for EGC in elderly patients aged ≥80 years by comparing their findings to the findings of patients aged <80 years.
Materials and methods: The study included 533 patients (632 lesions). The patients were divided into an elderly group (age, ≥80 years; 108 patients; 128 lesions; mean age, 83.4 ± 2.7 years) and a nonelderly group (age, <80 years; 425 patients; 504 lesions; mean age, 69.6 ± 7.9 years). We compared patient and lesion characteristics, overall survival (OS), and disease-specific survival (DSS) between the 2 groups retrospectively. Multivariate analysis was performed to clarify the risk factors of death after ESD.
Results: The rate of curative resection and adverse events was not significantly different between the groups. The mean survival time periods with regard to OS/DSS in the elderly and nonelderly groups were 75.8 ± 5.9 and 122.8 ± 2.6 months (P < 0.05)/120.0 ± 3.0 and 136.4 ± 0.6 months (not significant), respectively. In the elderly group, eGFR <30 ml/min/1.73 m2 was an independent risk factor of death (hazard ratio = 5.32; 95% confidence interval = 1.39-20.5; P=0.015).
Conclusion: ESD for EGC can be performed safely and can achieve high curability with good prognosis in elderly patients aged ≥80 years. After ESD, close attention should be paid to elderly patients with severe chronic kidney disease.
Copyright © 2019 Kenichiro Okimoto et al.