Improved understanding of how esophageal cancer behaves following curative resection, including knowledge of other causes of death, is essential for informed decision making. The medical records of 246 consecutive patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus who had undergone esophagectomy and lymphadenectomy of the neck, chest, and abdomen that was deemed macroscopically curative, were reviewed. Patients who had had other malignancies or anticancer treatment were excluded. Median follow-up period was 1289 days (minimum, 730 days). The initial patterns of recurrence were classified as intramediastinal, hematogenous, or lymphatic. Forty-two patients died of a cause other than recurrence. The in-hospital death rate was 3.6%, and 19 patients died of pulmonary disease. Sixteen patients developed a second primary, most of which were in the upper aerodigestive tract; five of those patients died. Ninety-eight patients developed recurrence. Depth of invasion and number of nodal metastases predicted recurrence. The pattern of recurrence was intra-mediastinal, lymphatic, and hematogenous in 11, 21, and 67 patients, respectively. The patients with lymphatic recurrence survived longer than the patients with either of the other types of recurrences. Eighty-three percent of recurrences presented within 24 months. The time-to-recurrence correlated with survival after recurrence. The disease recurred earlier in patients with advanced stage than unadvanced disease at the time of esophagectomy. The time-to-recurrence, and anticancer therapy after the recurrence related to the survival. Meticulous care must be taken to detect hematogenous recurrence as early as possible so that adjuvant therapy may be started. Maintaining a good performance status permits the use of aggressive therapy should there be a recurrence. Pulmonary physiotherapy and treatment of metachronous primary tumors may improve overall survival.

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