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Esophagectomy is a major, invasive, and long-lasting surgery performed in patients with comorbidities and compromised nutritional conditions. The historical challenges of surgical treatment of esophageal cancer are to overcome mortality, improve survival, and decrease morbidity.
The aim of the study is to compare the intraoperative morbidity of two distinct surgical techniques of esophagectomy in esophageal cancer, transhiatal esophagectomy and video-assisted thoracoscopy in the prone position, analyzing intraoperative physiological parameters, scores on admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) (APACHE II, SOFA, and SAPS III), and postoperative evolution.
Retrospective, cross-sectional study evaluating patients admitted to the ICU in the immediate postoperative period of elective esophagectomy for esophageal neoplasia (squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma). Data were obtained from a computerized registry database of the ICU and from patient records.
Sixty-three patients over 18 years of age were evaluated and divided into two groups: 31 (49.21%) underwent transhiatal esophagectomy, and 32 (50.79%) underwent videoassisted thoracoscopic esophagectomy. No statistically significant difference was observed for length of ICU stay (p=0.5309), length of postoperative hospital stay (p=0.3066), or death in the perioperative period (30 days, p=0.6562). Regarding intraoperative parameters, no statistically significant difference was observed for patients who received blood transfusion (p=0.2097); amount in milliliters (p=0.2893); patients who used vasoactive drugs (VADs) (p=0.9243); time VAD use (p=0.9327); volume of fluids infused in milliliters (p=0.7825); or diuresis in milliliters (p=0.7286). A statistically significant difference was observed for surgical time (310 min in transhiatal esophagectomy vs. 373 min in video-assisted thoracoscopy, p=0.0012) and anesthetic time (385 minutes in transhiatal vs. 467 min in video-assisted thoracoscopy, p<0.0001). A statistically significant difference was observed in the number of patients extubated at the end of the procedure (48.38% in transhiatal vs. 9.37% in video-assisted thoracoscopy, p=0.0022). Regarding gasometric parameters at the end of the surgical procedure, only pO2 showed a statistically significant difference (p=0.0010). Regarding ICU admission scores, there were no differences regarding APACHE II (p=0.6542), SOFA (p=0.8949), and SAPS III (p=0.7656).
This study showed no differences between the transhiatal and thoracoscopic esophagectomy in the prone position, in prognostic score performance, studied operative parameters, ICU stay and hospital stay times, and perioperative mortality, in agreement with literature findings. The advent of minimally invasive techniques in video-assisted esophagectomies brought the same benefits as thoracotomy, offering greater safety in mediastinal dissection under direct vision, in addition to mitigating the physiological repercussions of thoracotomies.
Data on the influence of donor gender on post-liver transplant outcomes is scarce and is lacking.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic factors of mortality in patients undergoing liver transplantation (LT) with a thorough evaluation of the influence of the donor variables.
All patients undergoing LT at a single center from December 2011 to December 2018 were included. The main outcome measure of the study was overall patient survival. The mortality predictors were evaluated using Cox regression.
The study analyzed 202 patients, 118 (58.1%) being males, and the average age was 54.19±11.66 years. Post-LT survival for the entire cohort of 202 patients as assessed by the KaplanMeier method at 1, 3, 5, and 7 years was 81.6, 73.1, 67.6, and 63%, respectively. The only predictor of increased overall mortality was female donor gender [HR 1.918, 95%CI 1.150–3.201, p=0.013]. Weight and height differences between donor and recipient were not related to mortality (p=0.545 for weight and p=0.964 height).
Female donor gender was associated with an increase in overall post-LT mortality, especially for male recipients, regardless of anthropometric parameters. For male patients receiving livers from female donors, infection was the most common cause of mortality, occurring in the first year following LT.
The effects of bariatric surgery in metabolically healthy obese (MHO) versus metabolically unhealthy obese (MUO) patients are underexplored in the literature.
The aim of the study was to compare the impact of bariatric surgery on weight loss, body composition, plasma biochemical parameters, and hepatic steatosis in MHO and MUO individuals.
Preoperative and 1-year postoperative medical records of 82 men and women aged 18–65 years, with body mass index >30 kg/m2, who underwent bariatric surgery from September 2021 to March 2023 were analyzed. MUO individuals were defined as those, metabolically unhealthy obese, with two metabolic syndrome risk factors, in preoperative data.
The prevalence of MHO and MUO individuals was 22 and 78%, respectively. Preoperative neck circumference and visceral adiposity index were higher in MUO individuals. Hepatic steatosis was the most common comorbidity in both groups. After 1 year, both groups demonstrated similar benefits from bariatric surgery in reducing body weight, adiposity, and anthropometric indices. Bariatric surgery also improved blood glucose, insulin sensitivity, and dyslipidemia in MUO individuals. However, 30% of MUO individuals presented with steatosis, compared to only 5.6% of MHO individuals. This outcome was accompanied by higher plasma levels of ferritin, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase in MUO individuals.
Bariatric surgery provided similar benefits in body mass for MHO and MUO individuals. However, after 1 year, MUO individuals still exhibited elevated markers of inflammation, liver injury, and steatosis, suggesting greater residual metabolic vulnerability.
Artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted colonoscopy has emerged as a tool to enhance adenoma detection rates (ADRs) and improve lesion characterization. However, its performance in real-world settings, especially in developing countries, remains uncertain.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of AI on ADRs and its concordance with histopathological diagnosis.
A matched case–control study was conducted at a colorectal cancer (CRC) referral center, including 146 patients aged 45–75 years who underwent colonoscopy for CRC screening or surveillance. Patients were allocated into two groups: AI-assisted colonoscopy (n=74) and high-definition conventional colonoscopy (n=72). The primary outcome was ADR, and the secondary outcome was the agreement between AI-based lesion characterization and histopathology. Statistical analysis was performed with a significance level of p<0.05.
ADR was higher in the AI group (60%) than in the control group (50%), but this difference was not statistically significant (p>0.05). AI-assisted lesion characterization showed substantial agreement with histopathology (kappa=0.692). No significant difference was found in withdrawal time (29 min vs. 27 min; p>0.05), indicating that AI did not delay the procedure
Although AI did not significantly increase ADR compared to conventional colonoscopy, it demonstrated strong histopathological concordance, supporting its reliability in lesion characterization. AI may reduce interobserver variability and optimize real-time decision-making, reinforcing its clinical utility in CRC screening.
Gastric cancer is the fifth most common and a leading cause of cancer death. Since 2005, perioperative chemotherapy (CT) has been the standard for non-metastatic gastric adenocarcinomas. Tumor response relies essentially on histological criteria.
The aim of the study was to evaluate tumor regression grade (TRG) after neoadjuvant CT and compare the Mandard and Becker scoring systems.
This 15-year retrospective study included patients with gastric adenocarcinoma treated with neoadjuvant CT and surgery. The TRG was assessed using Mandard and Becker scores, evaluated by area under the curve (AUC) for homogeneity, monotonicity, and discrimination. Tumors were staged by the American Joint Committee on Cancer and classified as the World Health Organization.
Forty patients (mean age 62 years; M:F ratio 2.6) were included. Tubular adenocarcinoma was the most common (48%), and 20% were stage IV. Mandard TRG1 and TRG5 each accounted for 15%, with median survivals of 48 and 30.5 months, respectively. For Becker TRG, they were 25.15 months (TRG 1), 24 months (TRG 2), and 54 months (TRG 3). The mean survival was 49.2 months for TRG1 and 39.2 months for TRG5 (Mandard), 50.3 months for TRG1 and 42.2 months for TRG3 (Becker). The positive predictive values for Mandard and Becker were 1.116 and 0.418 at 1 year and 5.719 and 1.820 at 5 years. The linearity values for Mandard and Becker were 0.6 and 0.3 at 1 year and 2.5 and 2.2 at 5 years. The AUC values at 1 year were 0.568 (Mandard), and 0.545 (Becker), and 0.606 for both at 5 years.
TRG is an independent survival predictor in gastric cancer, with similar performance between Mandard and Becker scores. Combined with ypTNM staging, it may enhance prognostic accuracy.
The management of gastric cancer has become increasingly complex, highlighting the importance of clinical guidelines to ensure standardized care. The Second Brazilian Consensus on Gastric Cancer was developed to guide clinical practice across the country.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the degree of implementation of the 2nd Brazilian Consensus recommendations in cancer reference centers in Brazil.
This multicenter study involved 18 cancer centers that prospectively collected data over a one-year period. Notably, 21 key statements from the Consensus were assessed. Adherence was defined as following the recommendation in more than 80% of applicable cases.
Of the 21 statements, 11 (52.4%) met the predefined adherence threshold. The selective use of endoscopic ultrasound and PET-CT was consistent with the recommendations. However, diagnostic laparoscopy was underutilized, performed in only 24.7% of patients. Preoperative nutritional therapy, another key recommendation, was provided in just 42% of cases. D2 lymphadenectomy was performed in 79.8% of surgeries, but only 63.3% of specimens included ≥25 lymph nodes, the recommended minimum for adequate staging. Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) was performed in approximately 25% of early distal tumors but was rarely used in advanced proximal tumors. Despite not being recommended for early stage tumors, omentectomy and bursectomy were still performed in a significant number of T1/T2 cases. Preoperative chemotherapy was used in 35.4% of distal tumors ≥IB and 54.3% of proximal tumors, showing partial adherence to this recommendation.
Just over half of the II Brazilian Consensus recommendations were implemented in routine practice. There was strong adherence to D2 lymphadenectomy and MIS for early distal tumors. However, there is still room for improvement in areas such as diagnostic laparoscopy, nutritional support, adequate lymph node retrieval, and using more neoadjuvant chemotherapy to enhance care and follow national guidelines.
The development of consensus statements and clinical guidelines supports decision-making in clinical practice. However, recommendations formulated by experts may not always reflect real-world clinical practice. In this study, 21 key statements from the 2nd Brazilian Consensus on Gastric Cancer were evaluated across multiple cancer reference centers. It was found that, in 10 of these statements, current clinical practice diverged from the consensus recommendations.
Some consensus statements may be revised in future editions to better reflect the realities of clinical practice in the national context. To enhance adherence to the recommendations, broad dissemination of the study results is essential, alongside the implementation of educational initiatives and institutional policies aimed at promoting guideline compliance. These measures may contribute to closing the gap between consensus recommendations and everyday clinical practice, ultimately improving patient outcomes.
Liver transplantation (LT) is increasingly recognized as a treatment option for various diseases affecting a growing elderly population. However, its use in patients over 70 years of age remains controversial in centers with suboptimal outcomes or high waitlist mortality.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of LT as a treatment option for elderly patients aged 70 years or older, in comparison with younger recipients.
This retrospective study was conducted based on medical record data from 309 liver transplant recipients treated by the same surgical team across three hospitals — two located in São Paulo, São Paulo state (SP) and one in Rio Branco, Acre state (AC). Patients were divided into two groups for comparison: those aged up to 69 years (Group I) and those aged 70 years or older (Group II).
Donor characteristics were similar between the two groups, except for a higher norepinephrine dose in Group I (p<0.05). Group II showed greater transfusion requirements and longer intensive care unit (ICU) stays (p<0.05), as well as higher rates of malnutrition and comorbidities. Notably, 90-day survival was comparable between the groups.
Patients aged 70 years or older can achieve outcomes comparable to those of younger recipients, provided they receive grafts from carefully selected donors. This population should not be excluded from transplant waitlists, and specific allocation policies or scoring adjustments should be considered to ensure equitable access.
A retrospective analysis of liver transplants was performed, comparing patients over and under 70 years of age. The elderly group was transplanted with careful donor selection and obtained results comparable to those of the younger group.
This study aims to show that elderly patients over 70 years of age can have good results after liver transplantation, comparable to patients under 70 years of age, with good donor selection and perhaps additional points to favor their position on the waiting list.
Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are chronic inflammatory conditions of a recurrent nature, whose incidence and prevalence rates have increased worldwide.
The aim of this study was to profile the doctors who treat patients with IBDs in Brazil and to understand and analyze the journey and importance of this care.
This is a cross-sectional study that descriptively and inferentially analyzed the pre-existing database of the Brazilian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Study Group and through this observed the reality of care for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, in the country.
In the descriptive analysis, we found results regarding the physicians’ profile such as specialty, number of patients treated with these diseases and their difficulties in accessing medications, complementary exams, and multidisciplinary team. In the statistical analysis regarding the Human Development Index of the states, the significant results were related to workplace, difficulty in accessing medications, and referral to other specialists. Regarding the association of variables with medical demographics, the results were significant in relation to workplace, difficulty in accessing medications, and complementary exams.
The study showed a profile of the doctors who treat patients with IBDs and who participated in this survey. In addition to analyzing and describing the doctor’s profile and their difficulties, we listed the main aspects that hinder both diagnosis and treatment, attributed to external factors, regardless of their reality and competence.
Inflammatory bowel diseases are chronic inflammatory conditions of a recurrent nature, whose incidence and prevalence rates have increased worldwide. It is known that early diagnosis and short start of the correct indicated treatment alter the natural history of the disease, preventing complications; hence, it is necessary to know the profile of the doctors who treat these patients in Brazil and especially to understand the difficulties in care and evaluate them in relation to other variables.
This study showed the profile of physicians who treat inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients, through their registration in the Brazilian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Study Group. In addition to analyzing the physician’s profile and their difficulties, the main aspects that hinder both the diagnosis and treatment of the disease, attributed to external factors, were listed. Therefore, more effective public health policies should be planned and expanded, aiming at growth and adaptation focused on IBDs
Orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) is a highly complex procedure, which can be difficult to control intraoperatively in patients with coagulopathies.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the prophylactic administration of epsilon aminocaproic acid (EACA) to reduce the need for transfusion of blood products and its relevance for thrombosis.
Patients were randomized into two groups: one group received EACA (20 mg/kg/h) before surgical incision until the end of OLT and a control group received a similar volume of 0.9% saline solution. Blood was collected to analyze fibrinolysis and coagulation disorders using rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM®).
A total of 24 patients received EACA and 26 patients received saline solution. In the analysis of the fibrinolytic and hemostatic coagulation profile by ROTEM®, fibrinolysis was significantly less frequent in the group of patients treated with EACA (p<0.001) in the anhepatic phase. There were no significant differences in the other extrinsic pathway thromboelastometry and fibrinogen-specific thromboelastometry analyses. In addition, there were no significant differences between both groups regarding the average and percentage transfusion of blood products, postoperative complications, patients who were discharged from the hospital, and those who died within 3 months after liver transplantation.
Although the administration of EACA did not reduce the transfusion of blood products, this drug effectively treated fibrinolysis and was not associated with any complications with increased risk of vein and hepatic artery thrombosis or mortality within 3 months after liver transplantation.
A total of 105 patients were assessed for eligibility, and 55 were excluded. The remaining 50 patients were randomized, of which 24 patients were allocated to the intervention group and the other 26 to the saline placebo group. In the analysis of the fibrinolytic and hemostatic coagulation profile by rotational thromboelastometry, fibrinolysis was significantly less frequent in patients treated with epsilon aminocaproic acid (p<0.001) compared to those in the placebo group during the anhepatic phase. In the other analyses using thromboelastometry assays such as extrinsic pathway thromboelastometry (EXTEM) (clotting time [CT], clot formation time, alpha angle, amplitude of clot firmness 10 min after CT [A10], and maximum clot firmness [MCF]) and fibrinogen-specific thromboelastometry (FIBTEM) (A10 and MCF), there was no significant difference nor postoperative complications in both groups.
Some studies have shown that epsilon aminocaproic acid (EACA) inhibits the binding of plasminogen to lysine residues on the surface of fibrin and prevents conversion of plasminogen to plasmin and the degradation of glycoprotein Ib receptors, thus preserving platelet function. Although EACA did not reduce blood product transfusion, the drug effectively treated all cases and was not associated with any complications of increased risk of hepatic artery and vein thrombosis or mortality within 3 months after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). These results support the safety of EACA as the antifibrinolytic drug of choice in OLT. However, future studies involving larger randomized clinical trials and higher doses are needed to further investigate the results.
The surgical approach for esophagogastric junction cancers (EJC), Siewert II, has been controversial regarding margin control, reconstruction, and lymphadenectomy extension. Therefore, predicting the need for total/subtotal esophagectomy and proximal gastrectomy (TEPG) or total gastrectomy with distal esophagectomy (TGDE) can be challenging, with each direction usually excluding the other. Historically, complication rates for TEPG are higher, affecting further systemic treatment and long-term outcomes.
The aim of this study was to describe a surgical strategy for approaching tumors such as Siewert II EGJ, with the intraoperative decision to perform total gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy D2 or esophagectomy with lymphadenectomy based on intraoperative frozen sections.
All patients underwent laparotomy, beginning with greater curvature detachment while preserving the right gastroepiploic, right and left gastric arteries; dissection of the esophageal hiatus for node harvesting; and transection of the distal esophagus and its frozen section. TGDE was preferred if the proximal margin of the distal esophagus was negative; TEPG and gastric tube reconstruction were performed through transhiatal access if the margin was positive.
Among 38 Siewert II patients, 26 (69%) underwent TGDE and 12 (31%) underwent TEPG, regardless of the trend toward higher complication rates, positive margins, and shorter overall survival in the TEPG group, no statistically significant differences were detected.
Although no significant differences in morbidity between the two procedures were noted, type II errors could be a possible cause. This study suggests that unnecessary esophagectomies can be avoided without jeopardizing surgical or oncologic outcomes by opting for a less morbid procedure.
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