title: [Multimodal therapy concepts in esophageal carcinoma: importance of radio- and chemotherapy].
abstract: Five-year survival of surgically treated patients with operable oesophageal carcinoma does not exceed 20%. The results with curative radiotherapy are even worse, with < or = 10% alive after 5 years. New treatment strategies are needed. Pre- or postoperative radiotherapy and perioperative chemotherapy alone do not improve survival. A simultaneous radiochemotherapy with cisplatin is significantly more effective than radiotherapy alone. A subgroup of patients with pathological complete remission after preoperative treatment (radio- and/or chemotherapy) survives significantly longer. It seems likely that survival in oesophageal cancer is improved by multimodal therapy encompassing radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgery. Further randomised trials are needed, possibly in combination with other potentially active drugs.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Radio-Onkologie, Kantonsspital Luzern.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Thum
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Frey
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Schefer
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000532:radiotherapy* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D002945:Cisplatin