title: Surgery for elderly patients with cancer of the cardia.
abstract: During the past 22 years, the operability rate has been 62.2% for patients 60 years or older, with cancer of the cardia (319/475). The resectability rate has been 66.2% (211/319). Proximal resection of the stomach with resection of the lower third of the esophagus was performed on 156 patients, and gastrectomy on 65. During the last 5 years the operative mortality has decreased from 24.2 to 12.5%. The major causes of death were leakage of anastomosis, pneumonia, acute cardiovascular failures, and myocardial infarction. The 5-year survival rate was 25.2%. The rate of relapse following radical surgery was 14.4% (23 operated patients). The mean duration of life for patients undergoing radical surgery was 26.3 months and those who had had explorative or palliative interventions was 4.5 to 9.3 months.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Oncology, All-Union Cancer Research Center (AUCRC), Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, USSR.
authors.forename: V I
authors.initials: VI
authors.lastname: Plotnikov
authors.forename: V L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Kulish
authors.forename: S G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Malaev
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000714:Anastomosis, Surgical / Q000401:mortality; D002299:Cardia / Q000601:surgery; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery; D004947:Esophagus / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000453:epidemiology; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality; D013270:Stomach / Q000601:surgery*; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D015996:Survival Rate