Clinical trial · Observational
Influence of Hospital Volume on Mortality and Length of Hospital Stay After Oesophageal Cancer Resection in Switzerland
Influence of Hospital Volume on Mortality and Length of Hospital Stay After Oesophageal Cancer Resection in Switzerland: A Retrospective National Registry Study
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
The effect of centralisation measures on the operative outcomes after oesophageal cancer resection (ECR) in Switzerland has not been highlighted yet. Oesophageal cancer is a rare malignancy in Switzerland. It accounts for 2% of all cancers, with an incidence of 603 per year between 2017 and 2021, affecting primarily men (incidence per year 445, 74%). The mortality of oesophageal cancer is high. The 437 annual oesophageal cancer-related deaths between 2017 and 2021 result in a low 5-year overall survival (OS) of only 30%. Together with the often polymorbid patients, the very demanding surgical technique, and the challenges in postoperative management, a specialised, high-volume, interdisciplinary treatment team is required. The centralisation of such complex surgical procedures in specialised centres aims to build up such treatment teams, resulting in improved quality of the treatment and increased patient safety. To concentrate such procedures in Switzerland, the "Intercantonal agreement on highly specialized medicine" came into force in 2009. In 2013, esophagectomy was regulated for the first time, and the first service allocations were awarded definitely to eight and provisionally to another eight Swiss centres. Before 2013, esophagectomy was performed in 69 hospitals in Switzerland. The decision on the allocation was revised in 2019, resulting in only eight Swiss centres remaining with a service contract for esophagectomy. The next review will take place on the 31st of July 2025. This retrospective registry study provides Swiss national data on the effect of centralisation on operative outcomes after oesophageal cancer resection (ECR) in Switzerland. It aims to measure the influence of the hospital-specific case number of ECR per year (hospital volume) on the outcome.
Conditions
Conditions (1)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esophageal Cancer | Malignant Esophageal Neoplasm | CURATED_EXACT | 0.92 |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esophageal cancer resection | Procedure | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (0)
[]Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
- Mortality
- timeFrame
- Periprocedural
- description
- The association between the hospital volume and the postoperative mortality Mortality Yes or No Hospital volume of esophageal cancer resection as marginal effect Association with GAM logistic regression
Secondary outcomes (3)
- measure
- Reoperation rate
- timeFrame
- Periprocedural
- description
- The association between the hospital volume and the reoperation rate Reoperation Yes or No Hospital volume of esophageal cancer resection as marginal effect Association with GAM logistic regression
- measure
- Length of hospital stay
- timeFrame
- Periprocedural
- description
- The association between the hospital volume and the length of hospital stay Length of hospital stay in days Hospital volume of esophageal cancer resection as marginal effect Association with quantile regression
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 20 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Esophageal cancer resection Exclusion Criteria: * Incomplete documentation * Age under 20 years * Other hospitals than general or surgical hospitals * No index operation
References
Publications (1)
- DERIVEDAmmann Y, Warschkow R, Klein M, Ukegjini K, Tarantino I, Steffen T. Association between hospital volume and mortality after elective oesophageal cancer resection in Switzerland: a retrospective national registry study from 2013 to 2022. Langenbecks Arch Surg. 2026 Jul 7. doi: 10.1007/s00423-026-04125-z. Online ahead of print. PMID 42412204