Retrospective Analysis of Sociodemographic Profile, Disease Characteristics, Treatment Strategies and Their Compliance for Oesophageal Cancer: A Five-year Experience from Government Funded Medical Centre in North India

Background: Carcinoma of the oesophagus is the eleventh most commonly diagnosed malignancy worldwide and the fifth most common in India. We planned a retrospective analysis of patients with malignancy at our government-funded medical centre in northern India. Materials and Methods: Data for these patients were retrieved between July 2019 and June 2024 and analysed for epidemiology, stage, treatment and compliance. Results: A total of 171 patients with oesophageal malignancy were registered during the specified period. Of these, 73% had locally advanced disease (T3-T4/N+) and 16% presented with metastatic disease. Most tumours originated in the thoracic region, with 20% involving the gastroesophageal junction. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) was the most common histology, occurring in 86% of patients. Only 65% of patients received some form of treatment. The majority, 91 patients (82%), were scheduled for definitive chemo-radiotherapy (non-metastatic). Conclusion: In our study, most patients had SCC, unlike the Western world where adenocarcinoma is more common; 89% of patients presented with metastatic or advanced stages. Our findings emphasise the urgent need to raise the awareness and to expand the number of government-funded medical centres with radiotherapy facilities, especially by distributing them more evenly across the population to ensure easy and early access.