This phase 3 randomised controlled trial compared robot-assisted oesophagectomy with thoracoscopic oesophagectomy for patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma. The study included 362 patients aged 18 to 75 years across six hospitals in China. Participants had biopsy-proven cancer and specific tumour classifications.
The main result focused on overall survival. At five years, 69.4 percent of patients in the robot-assisted group were alive compared with 56.2 percent in the thoracoscopic group. The analysis confirmed non-inferiority and showed a statistical signal of superiority for the robot-assisted approach.
Safety data showed that serious complications were similar in both groups. One treatment-related death occurred in each group. The follow-up period averaged about 59 months. Funding came from national and local research programs in China.
Readers should note that this was a single trial from one region. While the results are promising, more data from other settings may be needed before changing standard practice widely.