Analysis of different methods to measure lesion of esophageal carcinoma

Objective To compare accuracy of methods to measure lesion of thoracic segment esophageal carcinoma, and to provide the theory evidence for the precise sketch of irradiation targets.Methods A total of 598 patients with thoracic segment esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were enrolled in this retrospective study.Their lesion lengths were measured and compared respectively in intraoperative specimen,X-ray barium meal and CT.Results Measured mean lengths of lesion were respectively(6.70±2.52)cm,(5.13±1.91)cm and(5.23±1.93)cm in CT,X-ray barium meal and intraoperative specimen.There were significant differences in lesion lengths between intraoperative specimen and CT (P=0.000).There were no significant differences in lesion lengths between intraoperative specimen and X-ray barium meal(P=0.106).Lesion lengths were from top to bottom CT,intraoperative specimen and X-ray barium meal.There were no significant differences in lesion lengths between different pathological type,different T staging intraoperative specimen and X-ray barium meal(P＞0.05),but there were significant differences in lesion lengths between different pathological types(except intracavitary type),different T stagings intraoperative specimen and CT(P＜0.05). Conclusion Lesion length measured with CT is longer than that measured with intraoperative specimen,but it is shorter with X-ray barium meal than that with intraoperative specimen.It is suggested that X-ray barium meal and other examinations should be referred generally in using CT to depict esophageal carcinoma radiotherapy area. Key words: Esophageal neoplasms; Length; Tomography; X-ray computed; Esophagogram