Trends and outcomes of minimally invasive surgery for gastric cancer: 750 consecutive cases in seven years at a single center

BACKGROUND: The aims of this study were to investigate trends in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) for gastric cancer through the experience of a single center and to predict the direction of the development of MIS. METHODS: During a 7-year period, 2,160 patients underwent curative gastric cancer surgery. Changes in the proportion and pathologic features of a total of 750 cases that involved MIS, as well as the surgical methods and outcomes of MIS, were analyzed. RESULTS: An analysis of the patient population treated by MIS revealed that the proportion of patients with T2 or greater tumors on the basis of pathologic findings was initially <5.0% but had recently increased to 24.3%. Although the proportions of intracorporeal anastomosis and robotic surgery had recently increased, the complication rate and operative time had stabilized 2 years after the 1st MIS. CONCLUSIONS: Given these results, the application of MIS for gastric cancer is expected to become more frequent. In addition, new modalities will be preferred by both surgeons and patients to reduce the invasiveness of gastric cancer surgery. (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier Inc.