SynthesisBMC gastroenterology2025
Neuroendocrine carcinoma of esophagus: systematic review and meta-analysis of case series.
Synthesis in BMC gastroenterology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed.
- [Esophageal NEN: update on diagnostics and surgical treatment].Chirurgie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2026Review
- A Rare Case of Esophageal Small-Cell Neuroendocrine Carcinoma Presenting With Progressive Dysphagia.Cureus · 2026Article
- Esophageal Small Cell Carcinoma: From Bench Discoveries to Bedside Therapeutics.International journal of biological sciences · 2026Review
- Clinicopathological Spectrum and Survival in Esophageal Neuroendocrine Carcinoma and Mixed Neuroendocrine-Non-Neuroendocrine Neoplasms: A 74-Patient Cohort.Cancer management and research · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundNeuroendocrine carcinoma of the esophagus is a highly aggressive and rare type of cancer, making diagnosis and treatment challenging for clinicians. The current guidelines provide conflicting recommendations, and no standardized treatment protocol is available. We aim to deliver a systematic review of esophageal neuroendocrine carcinoma, including patient characteristics, treatment options, and prognostic factors.
methodsPubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase were searched up to May 2025 to retrieve the relevant studies containing at least 5 cases that reported treatment details, survival outcomes, or patient characteristics. Meta-analysis was conducted using a random-effects model for prognostic factors reported in at least three studies. We calculated survival information using the Kaplan-Meier method and estimated the median 1, 3, and 5-year survival rates in studies with available individual data that did not directly report the survival outcomes.
resultsOverall, 24 articles with 1618 cases were included. The median overall survival of patients was 22.5 months, with median 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates of 76%, 47%, and 34%, respectively. Distant metastasis (HR, 2.68; 95% CI: 2.10 to 3.41; P < .01) and lymph node involvement (HR, 1.44; 95% CI: 1.04 to 1.99; P = .02) were significantly associated with poor prognosis. Surgery in selected cases improved the survival outcomes with an HR of 0.36 (95% CI, 0.28 to 0.46; P = < .01).
conclusionThe current study demonstrates that distant metastasis and lymph node involvement are significant predictors of poor prognosis in esophageal neuroendocrine carcinoma. Survival outcomes were comparable between patients with resectable tumors undergoing surgery and those receiving definitive chemoradiotherapy, both of which outperformed chemotherapy alone or no treatment. While adjuvant therapy may improve survival in node-positive cases post-surgery, this evidence remains limited by small sample sizes in existing studies. Further large-scale, prospective studies are needed to validate optimal treatment strategies, particularly the role of multimodal therapy in advanced disease.
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