title: Role of photodynamic therapy in the management of advanced esophageal cancer.
abstract: Esophageal cancer usually presents at an advanced stage with dysphagia, and palliative therapy often is appropriate. Expandable metal stents are used for palliation because of their ease of insertion, but long-term complications remain common. Photodynamic therapy has been shown to be an effective ablative treatment for obstructing esophageal cancer, overall easier to use, and longer lasting than Nd:YAG laser ablation. Photodynamic therapy may be particularly useful in areas where stents may be problematic, such as in the upper esophagus, at the esophagogastric junction (where adenocarcinomas are increasing in frequency), and following radiation and chemotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Professor of Clinical Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Lightdale
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003680:Deglutition Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology; D017323:Dihematoporphyrin Ether / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004940:Esophageal Stenosis / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy; D006801:Humans; D015552:Injections, Intralesional; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000379:methods; D010778:Photochemotherapy; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D017323:Dihematoporphyrin Ether