Prognostic significance of circumferential resection margin involvement following oesophagectomy for cancer and the predictive role of endoluminal ultrasonography

BACKGROUND: The optimum multimodal treatment for oesophageal cancer, and the prognostic significance of histopathological tumour involvement of the circumferential resection margin (CRM+) are uncertain. The aims of this study were to determine the prognostic significance of CRM+ after oesophagectomy and to identify endosonographic (endoluminal ultrasonography (EUS)) features that predict a threatened CRM+. METHODS: Two hundred and sixty-nine consecutive patients underwent potentially curative oesophagectomy (103 surgery alone, 124 neoadjuvant chemotherapy (CS) and 42 chemoradiotherapy (CRTS)). Primary outcome measures were disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: CRM+ was reported in 98 (38.0%) of all, and in 90 (62.5%) of pT3 patients. Multivariate analysis of pathological factors revealed: lymphovascular invasion (HR 2.087, 95% CI 1.396–3.122, P<0.0001), CRM+ (HR 1.762, 95% CI 1.201–2.586, P=0.004) and lymph node metastasis count (HR 1.563, 95% CI 1.018–2.400, P=0.041) to be independently and significantly associated with DFS. Lymphovascular invasion (HR 2.160, 95% CI 1.432–3.259, P<0.001) and CRM+ (HR 1.514, 95% CI 1.000–2.292, P=0.050) were also independently and significantly associated with OS. Multivariate analysis revealed EUS T stage (T3 or T4, OR 24.313, 95% CI 7.438–79.476, P<0.0001) and use or not of CRTS (OR 0.116, 95% CI 0.035–0.382, P<0.0001) were independently and significantly associated with CRM+. CONCLUSION: A positive CRM was a better predictor of DFS and OS than standard pTNM stage.