Objective: To assess the frequency of brain metastasis in patients with primary esophageal cancer and to describe the clinical characteristics, diagnosis, and prognosis.
Methods: Of 1612 patients with primary esophageal carcinoma treated at a single institution from 2000-2010, a retrospective analysis of the medical files of 26 consecutive patients with central nervous system involvement was carried out. The clinical history, imaging, and pathologic findings were analyzed.
Results: Of the 26 patients, 12 initially presented with a single cerebral metastatic lesion, and 14 had multiple brain lesions. There were 4 patients with adenocarcinoma and 22 with squamous cell carcinoma. Treatments were as follows: 5 patients underwent surgery followed by whole-brain radiation, 5 underwent stereotactic radiosurgery, 13 received whole-brain radiation, and 3 received chemotherapy. The median survival was 4.2 months; 1-year survival rate was 5.8%.
Conclusions: In this retrospective study of 1612 patients with esophageal carcinoma at a single medical center, 1.61% (26 of 1612) of the patients had a diagnosis of brain metastasis. The prognosis is poor for patients with brain metastasis from esophageal carcinoma. A solitary brain lesion, surgical treatment, and a good Karnofsky Performance Status may indicate a good prognosis.
Keywords: Brain metastasis; Esophageal carcinoma; Prognostic factor.
Published by Elsevier Inc.