title: Esophageal cancer associated with right aortic arch: report of two cases.
abstract: We report herein two cases of thoracic esophageal cancer with a right aortic arch. Both cases were elderly males who complained of dysphagia. Computed tomography and aortography revealed a right aortic arch with a mirror-image branching and a diverticulum of the right descending aorta in both cases. They underwent an esophagectomy and a mediastinal lymph node dissection in a left thoracotomy, and we also added a median sternotomy in the second case for a lymph node dissection in the right mediastinum. The ductus arteriosus was divided in the first case, but he died of a rupture of the aortic diverticulum 13 months later. In conclusion, for a successful esophagectomy and mediastinal lymph node dissection, a median sternotomy should be added to the left thoracotomy, while careful attention should also be paid to the aortic diverticulum and the ductus arteriosus.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Surgery, Akita University School of Medicine, 1-1-1 Hondo, Akita 010-8543, Japan.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kitamura
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kamata
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ogawa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D001015:Aortic Arch Syndromes / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D004945:Esophagoscopy; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed