Outcome of failure in clearing the oesophageal margin in total gastrectomy for adenocarcinoma.
Failure to clear the oesophageal margin in total gastrectomy for adenocarcinoma is believed to be a major cause of mortality and morbidity. The incidence of histologically positive margin could range from 7.3 to 74%. Forty nine cases of total gastrectomy for adenocarcinoma were reviewed and nine (18%) had a positive oesophageal margin. One of the nine patients died on the second postoperative day from technical difficulty: the rest did not have anastomotic leaks. They all eventually died of metastatic disease in 3-20 months. Two had mild dysphagic symptoms which did not require active intervention. It is concluded that a histologically positive oesophageal margin in total gastrectomy does not preclude good anastomotic healing. Sound surgical judgement is required to balance the risk of leaving a positive margin and the risk of an extended operative procedure particularly when majority of the total gastrectomies are palliative rather than curative.