title: [Study on factors influencing survival in patients with cancer of the esophagus after resection by Cox proportional hazard model].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the prognostic factors in patients with cancer of the esophagus after curative resection.
  
  
  METHODS
  From 1985 to 1989 in our hospital, 1014 patients operated on for neoplasia of esophagus, who underwent a curative resection, and did not die within 30 days or during the hospital stay after operation, were included in this study. Thirteen possible factors influencing survival were selected. A multivariate analysis of these individual variables was performed using the cumulative survival rate by the computer's Cox proportional hazard model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The follow-up rate was 91.9% over 5 years. The over-all cumulative survival rate was 54.9% at 3 years, 45.9% at 5 years, and 39.3% at 10 years. The results showed that the major significant prognostic factors influencing survival of these patients were lymph node metastases, TNM stage, depth of invasion, location of tumor and histologic type (P < 0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lymph node metastasis is the most important prognostic factor for cancer of esophagus after curative resection. Lymphadenectomy along with esophagectomy is necessary to improve survival rate.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Surgery, Fourth Hospital, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang 050011.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ping
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Du
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D015996:Survival Rate