A Retrospective Study Focusing on Clinical Predictive Factors in 126 Patients with Oesophageal Carcinoma

• Published in: Anticancer research Vol. 24; no. 3B; pp. 1915 - 1920
• Main Authors: DREILICH, Martin, BERGSTRÖM, Stefan, WAGENIUS, Gunnar, BRATTSTRÖM, Daniel, BERGQVIST, Michael
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Attiki International Institute of Anticancer Research 01-05-2004
• Subjects: Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Esophageal Neoplasms - drug therapy; Esophageal Neoplasms - pathology; Esophageal Neoplasms - radiotherapy; Esophageal Neoplasms/drug therapy/pathology/radiotherapy; Female; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Neoplasm Staging; Prognosis; Retrospective Studies; Risk Factors; Survival Rate; Treatment Outcome; Tumors; Human; Carcinoma; Digestive system; Malignant tumor; Survival; Retrospective; Esophagus; Symptomatology; Cancerology; Focusing; predictive factors; Predictive factor; Oesophageal carcinoma
• ISSN: 0250-7005; 1791-7530

In Sweden, approximately 400 patients are diagnosed each year with oesophageal carcinoma. Despite the introduction of different
treatment schedules, only modest improvements in survival have been accomplished. To be able to select patients in whom a
more favourable outcome of radiation/-chemotherapeutic treatment could be expected, the present study reviewed the charts
from 126 consecutive patients with oesophageal carcinoma. All patients were treated at the Department of Oncology, Uppsala
University Hospital, Sweden, between 1990 and 2000. The charts were reviewed with focus on known and potential prognostic
factors. Performance status, smoking habits, swallowing function, localisation of the tumour, leucocytes and albumin levels
at first admittance, and stage of the disease were prognostic factors. However, performance status and stage of the disease
only remained as significant independent prognostic factors in the multivariate analysis (both with p-values<0.001). The results
imply that further characterisation of tumour biology in oesophageal carcinoma is needed to find additional predictive factors
for survival and future treatment strategies.