Abstract
It is a well known fact that hypopharyngeal cancer is often accompanied by esophageal cancer. We have reviewed 220 patients with hypopharyngeal cancer who were treated at Kurume University Hospital between 1989 and 2002 and 58 (26%) of them demonstrated double cancer of the esophagus. The three-year cumulative survival rates as determined by the Kaplan-Meier method in hypopharyngeal cancers with or without esophageal cancer were 51% and 56%, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups. In general, the number of total esophagectomies without a thoracotomy (TE) have tended to decrease. TE is normally performed for the treatment of T1a or T1b early esophageal cancer with multifple foci. In addition, as the prognosis of advanced hypopharyngeal and esophageal cancer is poor, palliative therapy is thus the preferred treatment option. Surgeons should therefore carefully consider the patients' QOL when selecting the treatment modalities for the larynx and esophagus in hypopharyngeal cancer patients.
