title: Does tumour location influence postoperative long-term survival in patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The seventh edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging system introduced tumour location for the first time as an determinant of stage grouping in pathological T2N0M0 and T3N0M0 (pT2-3N0M0) oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). However, the new modification remains controversial. The objective of this study was to investigate the correlation between tumour location and postoperative long-term survival in patients with OSCC in China.
  
  
  METHODS
  The clinicopathological data and over 10 years of follow-up results from a large cohort of 988 patients with OSCC undergoing radical-intent oesophagectomy from 1984 to 1995 without preoperative and postoperative chemoradiotherapy were reviewed, in which 632 patients were staged as pT2-3N0M0. Tumour location was redefined according to the seventh edition of the AJCC staging system. Survival was calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method; univariate log-rank and multivariate Cox proportional hazard models were used to further determine the impact of tumour location on long-term survival.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Univariate analysis showed that OSCC tumour location was closely associated with long-term survival for the entire cohort of 988 patients (odds ratio [OR]: 0.82; 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 0.67-0.99; P = 0.049), and for pT2-3N0M0 patients (OR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.48-0.84; P = 0.001). The median survival times for patients with pT2-3N0M0 OSCC in the upper, middle and lower third of the oesophagus were 38.1, 46.6 and 66.0 months, respectively, with corresponding 5-year survival rates of 40.0, 51.8 and 66.2%, respectively. Overall survival rates among three categories of patients according to tumour location in the pT2-3N0M0 patients were statistically different (P = 0.004). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that tumour location was a significant independent predictor of long-term survival for pT2-3N0M0 patients (OR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.42-0.67; P = 0.0001), but not for the entire cohort of 988 patients (OR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.79-1.23; P = 0.90).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Tumour location is an independent predictor of long-term survival for pathological T2-3N0M0 OSCC, and should be incorporated into the current staging system to predict long-term survival and identify high-risk postoperative patients.
authors: Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors: Hui
authors: H
authors: Shi
authors: Department of Thoracic Surgery, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, Chengdu, China.
authors: Kun
authors: K
authors: Zhang
authors: Department of Thoracic Surgery, General Hospital of Chinese People's Armed Police Forces, Beijing, China.
authors: Zhong-Xi
authors: ZX
authors: Niu
authors: Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors: Wen-Ping
authors: WP
authors: Wang
authors: Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors: Qiang
authors: Q
authors: Gao
authors: Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China drchenlq@gmail.com.
authors: Long-Qi
authors: LQ
authors: Chen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D016208:Databases, Factual; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D016629:Esophagectomy / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D060787:Neoplasm Grading; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Long-term survival; Oesophageal neoplasms; Oesophagectomy; Squamous cell carcinoma; Tumour location