Palliative treatment of esophageal carcinoma using laser and tumor probe therapy.

Laser therapy and BICAP tumor probe therapy offer effective and safe means of palliating obstructive esophageal cancer. Future developments may allow more precise application of these techniques, based on more sensitive means of identifying abnormal tumor tissue. The development of endoscopic ultrasonography and the use of tissue sensitizing agents (such as hematoporphyrin derivatives) may allow more accurate means of differentiating normal from abnormal tissue. This may lead to more precise and extensive tumor destruction, less injury to normal tissue, and less potential for complication. As the use of both of these modalities becomes more widespread, their role in the treatment of esophageal cancer will continue to grow.