Continued --in answer to:healthunlocked.com/oesophag...
I am not sure which procedure you had but if it was the standard Ivor Lewis then the Thoracotomy is most likely responsible for the altered sensation in your right arm/hand.
Also If during the op your right arm was strapped up (to improve access to the chest cavity) then impaired blood circulation can cause neuropathy -- think cramp/pins and needles times ten.
This happened to me and for the past 24 years the fourth and fifth fingers on my right hand have been numb and 'fizzy' !
I will post a pic diagram which will help to explain this possibility.
DIAGRAM* : Pictorial representation of the nerves (in yellow) serving the right arm .
From which it is reasonable to suppose that during an IL operation there can be collateral
damage resulting in temporary or permanent impairment of function.
*For the record this is not an artist's representation; it is an absolutely anatomically correct digital rendering.