Description
|
Purpose: Purpose: Esophageal cancer is a predominantly male disease. However, the sex differences associated with esophageal can- cer have not been thoroughly investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the differences between esophageal cancer in males and females in the Korean population. Materials and Methods: Materials and Methods: We assessed patients diagnosed with esophageal cancer between 2005 and 2015 at a tertiary referral center. The clinical features of patients, histopathologic characteristics of tumors, and treatment and survival outcomes were compared between male and female patients. Results: Results: We enrolled 2,068 patients, comprising 1,924 (93.0%) males and 144 (7.0%) females. The median age at diagnosis was younger for females than males (65 . 63 years, p=0.004). Squamous cell carcinoma was the predominant pathological type (99.0% in males and 93.1% in females); however, the proportion of adenocarcinoma cases was higher in females than males (0.8% . 5.6%, p<0.001). Multivariate analysis indicated favorable overall survival for female patients (hazard ratio [HR], 0.685; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.548−0.857) and patients with high body mass index (≥25 kg/m2, HR, 0.432; 95% CI, 0.355−0.526), and in early tumor stage (Stage 4, HR, 12.684; 95% CI, 7.451−21.591). The 5-year overall survival (44.8% . 53.5%, p=0.016) and recurrence-free survival rates (74.0% . 84.3%, p=0.036) were higher in females than in males. Conclusions: Conclusions: We found significant sex differences in esophageal cancer among the Korean population, with female patients demonstrating distinct clinical characteristics and more favorable survival outcomes compared to male patients. These find- ings underscore the importance of considering sex-specific factors in the management and prognosis of esophageal cancer. (2025-01-01)
|