The distribution of lymph node metastases, including recurrences, remains elusive in lower thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (LtESCC). The present study was a retrospective investigation into the optimized lymph node dissection range during LtESCC. Esophagectomies were performed on 163 patients with ESCC between 2009 and 2016, among whom 41 patients with LtESCC were examined. The rates of pathological and potential (including recurrences) metastases to lymph nodes and the prognosis (median, 34 months) were determined. Preoperative Docetaxel, Cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil chemotherapy was administered in >60% of cStage II/III LtESCC. During stage progression, abdominal lymph node metastasis rapidly becomes aggressive in LtESCC and lymph node metastases to the para-aortic area were more dominant than cervical and recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) areas. There were few control failures of regional lymph node metastases in LtESCC with surgery, if 1 unique case with cStage III who had metastases and recurrences of multiple lymph nodes during the clinical course was excluded. Defective lymph node dissection around the RLN did not worsen LtESCC prognosis with no RLN palsy. In the context of the potent preoperative chemotherapy and esophagectomy, lymph node dissection of cervical, para-aortic and RLN areas are putatively not mandatory to all LtESCC patients.
Keywords: Cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil; Docetaxel; esophageal squamous cell carcinoma; lower thoracic esophageal carcinoma; lymph node metastasis; recurrent laryngeal nerve.