AIM To assess the incidence, treatment and survival of patients with oesophago-gastric carcinoma in New Zealand. METHODS All cases of oesophageal or gastric carcinoma diagnosed in 1995-97 were retrieved from the national cancer registry. Linked data describing all episodes of inpatient treatment for these patients were obtained from the New Zealand Health Information System. An analysis of de...

Oesophageal carcinoma is among malignancies with poor prognosis due to the late onset symptoms related with large submucosal involvement, early lymphatic metastasis and its multicentric characteristics, majority of the patients decrease within the first year of diagnosis. However, bone metastasis is uncommon and reported to be 1% to 14% in autopsy series. Herein we report a case that was admitt...

Oesophageal carcinosarcoma is a rare type of oesophageal cancer composed of both squamous cells and sarcomatous cells. We report a case of a 71 year old man presenting with dysphagia and weight loss. Oesophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed a bulky mass with a preliminary diagnosis of only oesophageal carcinoma, and the oesophageal mass was resected with a transhiatal oesophagectomy. On surgical pa...

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 pati...

OBJECTIVES Oesophageal cancer is the eighth most commonly diagnosed cancer worldwide, and there is a need for biomarkers to improve diagnosis, prognosis and treatment. Sulfatases 2 (SULF2) is an extracellular endosulphatase that regulates several signalling pathways in carcinogenesis and has been associated with poor prognosis. This study evaluates the relationship between SULF2 expression by i...

The development of both adenocarcinoma of the jejunum and in situ squamous carcinoma of the oesophagus in an adult coeliac patient is described. Good evidence that adenocarcinoma of jejunum occurs more frequently in patients with coeliac disease has recently become available though this association has been suggested for some time. While oesophageal carcinoma has long been associated with coeli...

With the help of two experts in gastrointestinal oncology from the Netherlands Cancer Institute, Antoni van Leeuwenhoekhuis, a decision-support system is being developed for patient-specific therapy selection for oesophageal carcinoma. The kernel of the system is a probabilistic model describing the characteristics of oesophageal carcinoma and the pathophysiological processes of invasion and me...

The most optimal management for postoperative locoregional recurrence of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma is still controversial. Several studies have reported the feasibility and efficacy of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT), mostly with three-weekly or four-weekly schedule of chemotherapy. However, treatment compliance was not quite satisfactory, probably due to treatment-related toxicit...

BACKGROUND The prevalence and role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the aetiology of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma is uncertain. Based on the presence of HPV in the oral cavity and its causal association with squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx, we hypothesised that HPV is more strongly associated with proximal than distal oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma. METHODS A population-...

Dear Editor, Aorto-oesophageal fi stula (AEF) is a rare surgical emergency that is often lethal. Primary causes described include thoracic aortic aneurysm1 and carcinoma of the oesophagus.2 Secondary causes include foreign body ingestion3 such as chicken and fish bones, surgical instrumentation, and procedures such as oesophageal biopsy,4 and erosion from aortic bypass grafts.5 In this case rep...