Endoscopic therapy using an endoscopic variceal ligation for minute cancer of the esophagogastric junction complicated with esophageal varices: a case report.
BACKGROUND
Standard endoscopic mucosal resection or endoscopic submucosal dissection is a procedure for patients with minute cancers, complicated with esophageal varices that puts them at high risk of bleeding.


METHODS
We present the case of a 77-year-old Japanese man with alcoholic cirrhosis who underwent a routine endoscopy examination as a screening procedure for esophageal varices and was incidentally diagnosed as having minute cancer of the esophagogastric junction with esophageal varices. Endoscopic ultrasonography findings suggested that the minute cancer was a non-invasive carcinoma (carcinoma in situ) and a 2 mm in diameter blood vessel, feeding the esophageal varices, pierced the lesion. Following the examination, we carried out endoscopic treatment of the minute cancer and esophageal varices. Endoscopic variceal ligation was performed using a pneumo-activated device (Sumitomo Bakelite, Tokyo, Japan). Two years after the treatment, during the follow-up endoscopic examination on the patient, recurrence of carcinoma was not detected endoscopically or histologically.


CONCLUSIONS
Endoscopic therapy using an endoscopic variceal ligation device for minute cancer of the esophagogastric junction, complicated with esophageal varices, may be an acceptable and easily applicable method.
Akiyama
Tomoyuki
T
Gastroenterology Division, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Japan. inamorim@med.yokohama-cu.ac.jp.
Abe
Yasunobu
Y
Iida
Hiroshi
H
Endo
Hiroki
H
Hosono
Kunihiro
K
Yoneda
Kyoko
K
Takahashi
Hirokazu
H
Inamori
Masahiko
M
Ryo
Akihide
A
Yamanaka
Shoji
S
Inayama
Yoshiaki
Y
Nakajima
Atsushi
A