"Ebb phenomenon" -- diagnosis of submucosal diffuse invasion of esophageal cancer

The discovery of the "ebb phenomenon" in 1973 made it possible to detect submucosal diffuse invasion endoscopically. In 23 cases out of 74 cases, submucosal diffuse invasion was recognized. In 18 cases, submucosal diffuse invasion was recognized. In 18 cases, submucosal diffuse invasion was less than 30 mm from the margin of the main tumor but in 5 cases, invasion extended beyond 30 mm and in 2 cases, it extended almost 100 mm. It is very important to know of the existence of submucosal diffuse invasion and the range of its extent for the selection or combination of therapeutic modalities to improve the prognosis of these cases.