Benign ulcer in the gastric tube 9 years after esophagectomy for adenocarcinoma

Esophagectomy for esophageal carcinoma is associated with significant morbi dity. Longterm survival rates are usually poor. Common problems in the earl y postoperative period are pulmonary complications and leakage at the colla r anastomosis causing local infection, sepsis and subsequent anastomotic st rictures. There are only a few reports in the literature about benign ulcer ations in the gastric tube after resection of the esophagus for carcinoma. We report a patient with a huge benign ulcer in the gastric tube penetratin g into the right lung 9 years after esophagectomy for carcinoma. Several as pects of possible etiologic factors and different prophylactic approaches a s well as therapeutic aspects are discussed.