A Retrospective Study on Radiotherapy and Radiochemotherapy in Esophageal Cancer

One hundred nineteen patients with inoperable esophageal cancer who had been treated with radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy from Jan. 1982 to Dec. 1986 at the Korea Cancer Center Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Of 119 patients, 111 were male, and eight were female. Ten (8%) had a lesion in the cervical esophagus; 71 (60%), in the upper and midthoracic esophagus; and 38 (32%), in the lower esophagus. One hundred ten (92%) patients had squamous cell carcinoma, and nine (8%) had adenocarcinoma. In 40 patients receiving radiotherapy alone, the response rate was 50% (complete response, 10%; partial response, 40%) with a median survival of 9 months. The 1-, 2-, and 3-year survival rates were 35%, 10%, and 5%, respectively. In 36 patients receiving radiochemotherapy, the response rate was 61% (complete response. 20%; partial response, 41%) with a median survival of 15 months. The 1-, 2-, and 3-year survival rates were 45%, 31%, and 12%, respectively. Six patients who had received chemotherapy alone had no objective response and died within one year. None of the 37 patients who had not received a specific treatment for underlying cancer survived two years. T1 stage, a lesion in the cervical esophagus, and good performance status (0–2) were considered to be favorable prognostic factors. There was no significant difference in the response rate and the actuarial survival between the radiotherapy and radiochemotherapy groups. These results suggest that both radiotherapy and radiochemotherapy are effective treatment modalities for inoperable esophageal cancer.