The diagnosis for unresectable esophageal cancer by X-ray and CT findings

Factors of unresectability were examined by comparing X-ray and CT findings in 110 cases of unresectable esophageal cancer and in 66 cases of advanced esophageal cancer (A3) undergoing palliative resection. Unresectability was due to four categories: local (47), metastatic (31), generalized (23), and social factors (9). In unresectable cases arising from local factors, X-rays revealed the spiral type having the longitudinal diameter 10 cm or more and the spicular type of the base of ulcer even after irradiation; and CT revealed that malignant tumors too extended to be separated from the adjacent organ. CT was very useful in preorerative diagnosis of enlarged lymph nodes. In resectable cases, when lymph nodes were 10 mm or more in size, they could be identified by CT in the case of chest in 50% and in the case of abdomen in 71%. (Namekawa, K.)