Metastatic patterns of subcarinal, right and left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes in thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma without neoadjuvant therapy.

The metastasis rates of subcarinal, right and left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes in thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were all over 10%. The dissection of subcarinal lymph nodes does not increase postoperative complications risk, while recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes dissection significantly increases the incidence of hoarseness. Thus, lymph node dissection of subcarinal lymph nodes should be conducted routinely, while recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph nodes dissection may be selectively performed in specific patients.