Strategies to Improve Treatment - Stage 0 Esophageal Cancer

This content has been reviewed and approved by

Chandra P. Belani, MD
Deputy Director, Penn State Cancer Institute
Miriam Beckner Professor of Medicine
Penn State University School of Medicine

Because this is such an unusual stage for detection of cancer of the esophagus in the United States, there are essentially no new strategies directed specifically at treatment; however photodynamic therapy may be an option.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) - Photodynamic therapy is a type of laser treatment that involves injecting photosensitizing chemicals into the bloodstream. Cells throughout the body absorb the chemicals. The chemicals collect and stay longer in the cancer cells than in the healthy cells. At the right time, when the healthy cells surrounding the tumor may already be relatively free of the chemical, the light of a laser focuses directly on the tumor. As the cells absorb the light, a chemical reaction destroys the cancer cells. The light comes through an endoscope, a small, flexible tube with a light on the end, which goes through the mouth or nose. Photodynamic therapy may relieve or reduce some of the symptoms of esophageal cancer, such as difficulty swallowing.