[Diagnostic accuracy of fiber endoscopy in esophageal and gastric carcinoma. Attempt at error analysis]

A retrospective analysis was performed in 332 cases with cancer of the upper gastrointestinal tract. A limit of one month was set for delayed and missed bioptically verified endoscopic diagnosis. Malignant cycle in ulcerated lesions and the size of elevated processes were the probable causes of delayed diagnosis in 7 out of 37 cases with early cancer. In advanced gastric cancer missed diagnosis was probably caused by the indication for endoscopy made too late in an unknown number of cases or patient's refusal to undergo controls. However, failure of the endoscopist to recognize a malignant process must be considered too. The percentage of endoscopist's mistakes was below 2% in our series.