Abstract: Objective To investigate the prognostic factors of patients with stage Ⅱ-Ⅲesophageal carcinoma after radical esophagectomy. Methods The clinical data of 716 patients with stage Ⅱ-Ⅲ esophageal carcinoma after radical surgery from 2007 to 2010 were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate analysis was performed by log-rank test, and multivariate analysis was performed by a Cox regression model. Results The 1-, 3- and 5-year overall survival rates were 79.85%, 58.27% and 49.73%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that gender, adhesion degree in operation, number of positive lymph nodes, T stage and postoperative adjuvant therapy were independent factors for overall survival (OS) (all P＜0.05). The patients with stage Ⅱa (n=342) obtained better OS in postoperative chemotherapy group compared with that of operation group and postoperative radiotherapy group (χ2=9.301 and 4.422,respectively, P＜0.05 or P＜0.01). The patients with stage Ⅱ b (n=75) and Ⅲ (n=299) obtained better OS in postoperative chemoradiotherapy group and postoperative radiotherapy group compared with that of operation group (Ⅱb:χ2=3.926 and 4.605,respectively, P＜0.05; Ⅲ:χ2=8.504 and 7.435, respectively, P＜0.01). The 1- , 3- and 5-year progression-free survival rates were 71.23%, 49.32% and 38.26%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that gender, adhesion degree in operation, TNM stage and postoperative adjuvant therapy were independent factors for progression-free survival (PFS) (all P＜0.05). The patients with stage Ⅱ a obtained better PFS in postoperative chemotherapy group compared with that of operation group (χ2=7.481, P＜0.01). The patients with stage Ⅱb andⅢobtained better PFS in postoperative chemoradiotherapy group compared with that of operation group(χ2=6.684 and 5.741, respectively, P＜0.05). Conclusion Postoperative adjuvant therapy is important for the prognosis of stage Ⅱ - Ⅲ esophageal cancer patients after radical esophagectomy. Patients with stage Ⅱ a treated with postoperative chemotherapy and stage Ⅱb-Ⅲtreated with adjuvant radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy can obtain better prognosis.

Key words: esophageal neoplasms, esophagectomy, radiotherapy, antineoplastic combined chemotherapy protocols, prognosis