Esophagectomy in patients 80 years of age and older with carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus

Abstract

In the elderly, preoperative pulmonary risk is frequently present, and careful perioperative management is needed while paying special attention to pulmonary and cardiovascular complications. However, when the indications for surgery can be strictly determined, an esophagectomy is considered a viable treatment alternative with satisfactory prognosis even in patients 80 years of age and older without any increased morbidity or mortality.

The Impact of Age on Morbidity and Mortality following Esophagectomy for Esophageal Cancer

“…30,31 The implication from existing data is that a select group of elderly patients can tolerate a major operation. Individual studies have highlighted that selected septuagenarians and octogenarians tolerate esophagectomy at a rate similar to those who are younger than 70 years of age.…”

Quality-of-care indicators for oesophageal cancer surgery: A review

“…In several studies, the influence of old age was investigated [44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56] . In a minority of studies, older age was associated with an unfavourable postoperative outcome 44;49;52;53;55;56. The use of a risk score may be a quality indicator.…”

Management and Outcomes of Localized Esophageal and Gastroesophageal Junction Cancer in Older Patients

“…The overall morbidity for esophagectomy is estimated to range between 25% and 50% 28 . Although some surgical series suggest that medical comorbidities, rather than actual age, are the most important factors in predicting perioperative morbidity and mortality 26,27,29 , advanced age appears to be an independent risk factor for perioperative mortality in other reports 8,30 .…”