[Epidermoid cancer of the thoracic esophagus following mediastinal irradiation].

Squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus induced by radiation therapy is a rare entity. We report 4 cases observed during the past 4 years. Three women and one man aged from 47 to 78 years developed squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus 8 to 11 years after radiation therapy. The 3 women had been irradiated for breast cancer and the man for Hodgkin's disease with 40 to 57.5 Gy. Three patients were operated on and the immediate postoperative course was uneventful. Culling data from this report and from the literature we reviewed the different steps concerning the diagnosis and the treatment of this complication of radiation therapy. We suggest that diagnostic and therapeutic modalities should follow the same guidelines as in other esophageal cancers.