[Achievements of tumor surgery in tumors of the esophagus].

In the past the decisive problem influencing the prognosis of esophageal cancer was the high death rate of patients undergoing esophagectomy (approximately 30%). Intensive analysis of the preoperative risk factors, standardization of the operative procedure and improvement of postoperative intensive care have lowered this to an average of 15%, in specialized clinics to 7-8% and in especially selected patients even to 3%. The operation is the best therapeutic procedure for tumors which do not yet extend beyond the muscularis of the esophageal wall and in which less than 5 mediastinal lymph nodes are metastatically involved.