CARCINOMA of the esophagus is one of the least successfully treated malignant tumors. Usual features of the disease which undoubtedly contribute to its lethal nature are its elusion of early detection and the presence of mediastinal extension at the time of operation. Representative results of treatment are those reported by Kay1 in which only 2% of the entire group and 5% of the resected patients with esophageal carcinoma survived five years. In a series of patients with carcinoma of both esophagus and gastric cardia, Adams2 achieved five-year success in 9% of a group of patients treated by surgery followed by high voltage radiation therapy. Although Ellis3 and coauthors achieved 17% five-year survival for patients who survived resections for lesions of the esophagus and cardia, their success during the same period for all patients in their study was only 4%.
Although in recent years extensive and adequate operations