Early diagnosis of esophageal cancer.

The doubling time of esophageal cancer, as measured by x-ray films, was studied retrospectively. The average doubling time of 19 lesions in 18 cases was 6.7 months, but in three cases the lesions doubled within a month. The developing time of depth of invasion in esophageal cancer in 19 lesions were: from mucosa to submucosa, 16 +/- 7.8 months; submucosa to advanced adventitia, 6.6 +/- 3.8 months; mucosa to advanced adventitia, 21.1 +/- 6.8 months. Lugol-staining endoscopy was effective in detecting not only lesions but also margin lines. Capsulated brushing cytology is also effective and the diagnostic rate was 94.5% in total, and 84.4% in superficial cancer. For early detection of esophageal cancer it is most desirable to have examinations once every six months and a combination of these three methods is recommended.