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Clinical features and prognostic factors of brain metastasis from esophageal carcinoma

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Abstract

Background

Brain metastasis from esophageal carcinoma is uncommon. The aims of this study were to assess the frequency of brain metastasis from esophageal carcinoma, describe treatment modalities and their outcomes, and determine predictors of survival.

Methods

Between 2004 and 2012, 680 patients with esophageal carcinoma were registered at Keio University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. Of these patients, 16 (2.3 %) were diagnosed with brain metastasis. We reviewed their medical records and performed statistical analyses.

Results

The median survival after diagnosis of brain metastasis was 5.0 months (95 % CI 1.2–8.7 months). The only statistically significant baseline characteristic that predicted worse survival from brain metastasis was the onset form of brain metastasis (p = 0.01). At the onset of brain metastasis, the median survival from brain metastasis was 13.0 months (95 % CI 0.0–31.0 months) in patients without extracranial metastasis and 2.0 months (95 % CI 0.0–4.3 months) in patients with extracranial metastasis (p = 0.01).

Conclusions

Approximately 2 % patients with esophageal carcinoma were diagnosed with brain metastasis. The prognosis of brain metastasis is extremely poor, but long-term survival may be expected with intensive treatment for brain metastasis when the first metastatic site is the brain.

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Ethical Statement

Our study protocol was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Keio University Hospital and was in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000 and 2008.

Conflict of interest

There are no financial or other relations that could lead to a conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 160-8582, Japan

    Akihiko Okamura, Hiroya Takeuchi, Hiroyuki Sako, Rieko Nakamura, Tsunehiro Takahashi, Norihito Wada, Hirofumi Kawakubo, Yoshiro Saikawa, Tai Omori & Yuko Kitagawa

  2. Department of Gastroenterological Surgery, Tokai University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan

    Soji Ozawa

Authors
  1. Akihiko Okamura
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  2. Hiroya Takeuchi
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  3. Hiroyuki Sako
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  4. Rieko Nakamura
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  5. Tsunehiro Takahashi
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  6. Norihito Wada
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  7. Hirofumi Kawakubo
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  8. Yoshiro Saikawa
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  9. Tai Omori
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  10. Soji Ozawa
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  11. Yuko Kitagawa
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hiroya Takeuchi.

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Cite this article

Okamura, A., Takeuchi, H., Sako, H. et al. Clinical features and prognostic factors of brain metastasis from esophageal carcinoma. Esophagus 11, 217–222 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10388-014-0434-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10388-014-0434-8

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