Cervical esophageal cancer: a population-based study.

Background The purpose of this study was to present our analysis of outcomes, prognostic factors, and treatment for cervical esophageal carcinoma using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Methods A query of the SEER database from 1998 to 2008 was performed for patients with nonmetastatic adenocarcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the cervical esophagus. Disease-specific survival (DSS) rates were calculated using Kaplan–Meier method, and predictive factors were analyzed by Cox proportional hazards regression. Results We identified 362 patients; 92% of the patients had SCC, 16% received no definitive therapy, 5% received surgery, 71% received radiation therapy (RT), and 8% received both. Chemotherapy data were not available. Median DSS was 49 months for adenocarcinoma and 15 months for SCC. On multivariate analysis, histology (p = .02), RT (p < .001), and surgery plus RT (p < .001) were associated with DSS. Conclusion Survival in patients with cervical esophageal carcinoma remains poor. Further studies should define the use of RT, surgery, and chemotherapy. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 37: 808–814, 2015