[The usefulness of intracavitary brachytherapy in esophageal cancer]

Two different irradiation methods for the treatment of esophageal cancer have been compared and analyzed. One group of 146 patients were treated by external irradiation alone at the Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, while another group, consisting of 76 patients, were treated by external irradiation combined with booster intracavitary brachytherapy utilizing Radium-226 tubes at the National Sapporo Hospital. The patients that were treated by the addition of booster intracavitary brachytherapy showed a better response than the patients treated by external irradiation alone, with respect to the local control rate and survival. Booster intracavitary brachytherapy was found to be a more effective method for patients with esophageal smaller lesions and/or patients manifesting the serrated spiral, or funnel type lesions in their X-rays.