Palliative bipolar electrocoagulation treatment of malignant gastroesophageal strictures

[Non-surgical treatments of esophageal cancers]

INTRODUCTION

Despite improvements in surgical techniques and perioperative mortality, only slight improvements in the 5-year survival of patients with esophageal cancer have been observed in the last 20 years. Many patients with apparently localized cancer will have recurrences or metastatic disease despite surgery with curative resection. Consequently, multimodal therapies, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy, were introduced. This review outlines and critically analyzes current non-surgical treatments, including palliative care.

CURRENT KNOWLEDGE AND KEY POINTS

Esophageal cancers appear to be chemosensitive but the median duration of response is short and toxicity consistent, especially in metastatic disease. Consequently, palliative chemotherapy should be offered preferably within a clinical trial. Chemotherapy as the only adjuvant treatment cannot be recommended outside clinical trials. Radiotherapy alone as a curative treatment has been proven to be inferior to chemoradiotherapy in inoperable tumors. Some data support the use of preoperative chemoradiotherapy, but randomized trials are conflicting. A pathological complete response has been identified as a favorable prognostic factor for survival. Self-expanding esophageal metal stents are a simple and effective palliative treatment of malignant dysphagia and can be considered as the reference treatment in patients with obstruction of the lower esophagus or with fistula.

FUTURE PROSPECTS AND PROJECTS

Taxanes should be evaluated in randomized studies using chemotherapy or chemo-radiotherapy. Progress in radiotherapy, such as accelerated fractionation, greater radiation dose, and the addition of brachytherapy, will increase locoregional control and probably survival. The role of secondary surgery in patients responding to chemoradiotherapy still needs to be answered.

Comparison of different treatments for unresectable esophageal cancer

Many patient with esophageal cancer have advanced disease that in not amenable to curative treatment. For these individuals the relief of dysphagia is of utmost importance to the quality of their remaining survival time. This article reviews and compares the methods of palliation with focus on indications and contraindications, advantages as well as disadvantages of each technique, success rates, and complications. Tumor characteristics, the physician's experience, the institution's capabilities, cost, and patient preference will influence choice of palliation. Methods are often complementary rather than competitive.

Quality of life with carcinoma of the esophagus

Management of squamous carcinoma of the esophagus remains a dilemma for the clinician. Current treatments produce significant morbidity and mortality, yet most patients still die of their disease. Given the limitations, survival alone is insufficient to assess the various options; quality of life (QOL) must also be addressed. This paper reviews the topic of QOL, the various instruments available to measure it, and methods to evaluate such instruments. A 16-year review of the literature was performed to assess the extent to which QOL has been addressed in patients with esophageal carcinoma. Only 51 of 7569 references on esophageal neoplasms considered QOL. Only 3 used documented QOL instruments with appropriate statistical testing. Currently there is no well validated instrument for measurement of QOL in patients with esophageal carcinoma.