Prospective Evaluation of a New Covered Metal Stent for Malignant Lesions of the Esophagus

The incidence of esophageal cancer is increasing, and despite advances in treatment, the prognosis is still very poor [1-4]. At presentation, between 50-60 % of patients have unresectable disease [5,6]. For these patients, palliation is the goal with a particular focus on the relief of dysphagia, which is the major etiology of morbidity [5,6]. Presently, Self expanding metal stent (SEMS) have become the treatment of choice for dysphagia associated with unresectable esophageal and GE junction malignancies.

In this study, a newly designed and FDA approved fully covered metal stents will be used to palliate 20 patients with malignant lesion of the esophagus. Dysphagia score will be assessed before and after treatment to confirm efficacy

The objectives are:

To evaluate if the newly fully covered metal stent , HANAROSTENT can provide adequate palliation of cancerous lesions of the esophagus;
To determine whether it is non-inferior in efficacy and safety to the esophageal stents currently available at UVa with minimal complications and improvement of symptoms