title: [Prognostic impact of different chemotherapy strategies on small cell esophageal carcinoma].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the prognostic impact of different chemotherapy strategies on small cell esophageal carcinoma (SCEC).
  
  
  METHODS
  The clinical data of 62 patients with histologically confirmed SCEC treated in our department between January 2006 and April 2011 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 39 patients with limited stage (LS) and 23 patients with extensive stage (ES) SCEC according to the Veterans Administration Lung Study Group staging system. Cox's hazard regression model was used to determine the prognostic factors, and Chi-square test was used to detect the difference of frequencies among different groups. Kaplan-Meier and log-rank analyses were used to estimate and compare the survival rates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The chemotherapy combined with local therapy group was significantly better than chemotherapy alone group in median survival time (MST) (20.8 vs. 7.6 months, P<0.05). The MST was 18.0 months and the 1-, 2-, and 3-year overall survival rates (OS) were 68.8%, 38.6%, and 20.9%, respectively, for all the 62 patients. Etoposide plus cisplatin or carboplatin (EP/CP) did not result in significantly longer MST, compared with that of the cases treated by other combination chemotherapy (P>0.05, for either LS or ES cases). Multivariate analysis showed that the VALSG stage, the number of chemotherapy cycles (≥ 4), and treatment modality are independent prognostic factors (P<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SCEC is a tumor characterized by high malignancy and poor prognosis. Chemotherapy combined with local therapy is an effective treatment for SCEC, and appropriate chemotherapy cycles (≥ 4) may improve the survival time. EP/CP, as commonly used multidrug chemotherapy regimen, is not superior to other combination chemotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University; Henan Cancer Hospital. Zhengzhou 450000, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University; Henan Cancer Hospital. Zhengzhou 450000, China.
authors.forename: Wenying
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University; Henan Cancer Hospital. Zhengzhou 450000, China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University; Henan Cancer Hospital. Zhengzhou 450000, China.
authors.forename: Chen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University; Henan Cancer Hospital. Zhengzhou 450000, China; Email: shenwayne440@126.com.
authors.forename: Suxia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Luo
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016190:Carboplatin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D018288:Carcinoma, Small Cell / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D005047:Etoposide / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006801:Humans; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D005047:Etoposide; D016190:Carboplatin; D002945:Cisplatin