| [ Summary ] |
With the recent improvements in endoscopic techniques, numerous early esophageal cancer are detected and many of them can be treated by using endoscopic mucosal resection(EMR) with reasonable morbidity and mortality. EMR has greater advantages over radical surgical resection because of the positive outcome of the procedure, due to a reduced degree of invasiveness. EMR is indicated as a good treatment for superficial esophageal cancer. Types of EMR include endoscopic esophageal mucosal resection-tube (EEMR-tube) method, endoscopic mucosal resection-cap (EMR-C) method and double channel method, and these methods are performed in responce to the circumstances associated the lesion such as its depth, size, occupation and the number of tumors. It is so important to determin the depth of of the cancer's invation that accurate endoscopic findings and endoscopic ultrasongraphy are both recommended. On the basis of the evaluation of these findings, superficial esophageal cancer, without lymphnode metastasis, would undergo EMR. Subsequent therapeutic strategies should depend on the circumstantial pathological findings about the specimen obtained through EMR. Deep invasion of cancer in the mucosal and submucosal layers calls for radical surgical resection, to reduce the possibility of lymphnode metastasis. We would like to emphasize that EMR should first be performed to determine a strategy for treatment of early esophageal cancer, that will contrubute to the prominent puality of patient's life. |