Analysis of prognostic factors for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma with distant organ metastasis at initial diagnosis

Abstract Background Esophageal cancer is the eighth most common malignancy and sixth most fatal disease worldwide. However, it is the fourth most common cause of death in China. Although surgery is currently the recommended course of treatment, there are some patients that do not receive radical treatment due to the presence of distant organ or lymph node metastasis. There is at present no established treatment standard for esophageal cancer patients with distant organ metastasis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic factors involved in determining survival of esophageal cancer patients with distant organ metastasis at initial diagnosis, and to provide a reference for the planning of a clinical treatment strategy. Methods The data of 57 evaluable esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients with distant organ metastasis at initial diagnosis were studied retrospectively. The survival rate was calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method, and the log-rank test was used to test the differences. Multivariable analysis was performed using the Cox proportion hazards model. Results The median survival time for all patients was 6 months (range, 1–55 months), and the 1- and 2-year survival rates were 21.1% and 11.8%, respectively. The median survival time for patients with single metastasis was 10 months with 1- and 2-year survival rates of 47.4% and 28.1%, respectively. For patients with multiple metastases, the survival duration was 5 months, with 1- and 2-year survival rates of 7.9% and 3.9%, respectively ( p