Oesophageal cancer: Which treatment is the easiest to swallow? A review of combined modality treatments for resectable carcinomas

- Prognosis for oesophageal cancer remains grim despite advances in treatment.
- The most widely employed treatment is neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy plus surgery.
- To date, no treatment has become universally accepted.
- Previous studies were criticised for patient selection, tumour type heterogeneity.
- Tumour molecular profiling should assist in better patient selection.

Oesophageal cancer is a relatively uncommon malignancy, but with poor prognosis. Despite several treatment options that are available, the 5-year survival rates rarely exceed 40%. This review discusses the main challenges of oesophageal cancer, the available treatment options, and the most effective treatment in terms of overall survival. The outcomes of clinical trials show that neo-adjuvant chemo-radiotherapy using cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil followed by oesophagectomy results in the greatest survival. However, the optimal chemotherapy and radiotherapy schedule remains unclear. There is no satisfactory treatment to date, particularly for patients with co-morbidities or advanced tumours.