THE ROLE OF ESOPHAGOSCOPY IN DIAGNOSIS AND MANAGEMENT OF ESOPHAGITIS IN CHILDREN WITH CANCER

Esophagitis is a common complication in patients treated for cancer; h owever, difficulty in determining its etiology on the basis of noninva sive clinical information limits the implementation of specific therap ies. We reviewed our experience with esophagoscopy and biopsy as an ai d in the diagnosis and management of esophagitis in children with canc er. Of eleven episodes of esophagitis evaluated by esophagoscopy with biopsy, four (36%) had an infectious etiology (two with Candida, one w ith Herpes simplex virus, and one with viridans streptococci). The abs olute neutrophil count, presence of oropharyngeal colonization, and ap pearance of the esophagus at esophagoscopy were not predictive of the etiology of esophagitis. Esophagoscopy with biopsy affected the manage ment of 4 (36%) patients. We believe this procedure to be a valuable a id in managing esophagitis in children with cancer by providing object ive data not otherwise available to the clinician. (C) 1997 Wiley-Liss , Inc.