OBJECTIVETo evaluate the clinicopathological characteristics and surgical treatment of esophageal carcinosarcoma.

METHODSThe patients with esophageal carcinosarcoma were divided into two types according to barium swallow: intraluminal carcinosarcoma (n=20) and fungating carcinosarcoma (n=2). Only one esophageal carcinosarcoma case was diagnosed by esophagoscopic biopsy preoperatively. Twenty patients underwent left thoracic approach esophagectomy and esophagogastrostomy above aortic arch, and two patients underwent esophagectomy and esophagogastrostomy below aortic arch.

RESULTSAll the cases survived during operation and had no severe complication. Post-operative biopsy revealed that 21 cases had definite boundary between the carcinoma and the sarcoma. Only one case showed the invasion of carcinomatous tissues into sarcomatous tissues and mixed growth. Four cases had lymph node metastases (18.2%). The 1-, 3- and 5-year survival rates were 90.9% (20/22), 77.3% (17/22) and 68.2% (15/22) respectively.

CONCLUSIONSEsophageal carcinosarcoma is a rare malignant tumor with little invasiveness, low lymph node metastasis, early clinical symptom occurrence, low preoperative accurate diagnostic rate and good prognosis. Surgical resection is the main treatment for esophageal carcinosarcoma.