Robot-assisted IVOR-LEWIS Esophagectomy (RAILE)

Minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) have become increasingly popular in esophageal cancer. It is generally accepted that comparing to open resections, MIE results in decreased postoperative pain, faster recovery times, and shorter hospital stays with comparable oncologic outcomes. However, MIE poses an important challenge for established thoracic surgeons as it is a difficult technique to become skilled at with an protracted learning curve. Standard laparoscopic and thoracoscopic instruments are rigid and provide a finite freedom of movement with a two dimensional visualization of the operating field. Such a difficulty is increased even more when the Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy with an intrathoracic anastomosis is needed.

Robot- assisted surgical system has opened a new era of minimally invasive surgery. Robot- assisted surgery offers some advantages including high- definition three- dimensional visualization and 7 degrees of freedom with the use of its surgical wrists, motion scaling, and tremor filtration, allowing the surgeon to perform complex operations comfortably in the domain of urinary tract, hepatobiliary and gynecological surgery. Although a robot-assisted thoraco- laparoscopic minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) was initiated from 2003, the published experience with RAMIE remains small, especially for Ivor- Lewis approaches. The aim of this study was to investigate the short- term and long-term outcomes of RAILE to identify any clinical or oncologic benefits of RAILE in esophageal cancer.