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©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Oncol. Aug 15, 2014; 6(8): 263-274
Published online Aug 15, 2014. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v6.i8.263
Published online Aug 15, 2014. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v6.i8.263
Esophageal cancer management controversies: Radiation oncology point of view
Patricia Tai, Department of Oncology, Division of Radiation Oncology, Allan Blair Cancer Center, University of Saskatchewan, Regina, SK S4T 7T1, Canada
Edward Yu, Department of Oncology, Division of Radiation Oncology, Western University, London, ON N6A 4L6, Canada
Author contributions: All authors designed, wrote and approved the final version of manuscript.
Correspondence to: Dr. Edward Yu, Department of Oncology, Division of Radiation Oncology, Western University, 790 Commissioner Road East, London, ON N6A 4L6, Canada. edward.yu@lhsc.on.ca
Telephone: +1-519-6858650 Fax: +1-519-6858627
Received: November 28, 2013
Revised: March 21, 2014
Accepted: May 31, 2014
Published online: August 15, 2014
Processing time: 264 Days and 7 Hours
Revised: March 21, 2014
Accepted: May 31, 2014
Published online: August 15, 2014
Processing time: 264 Days and 7 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Esophageal cancer treatment has evolved from single modality to trimodality therapy. There are some controversies of the role, target volumes and dose of radiotherapy (RT) in the literature over decades. Esophageal brachytherapy is effective in the palliation of dysphagia, but should not be given concomitantly with chemo or external beam RT. On-going studies include: ZTOG1201 trial (a phase II trial of neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemoradiation) and QUINTETT (a phase III trial of neoadjuvant vs adjuvant therapy). These trials hopefully will shed more light on the future management of esophageal cancer.