Taiwan Experiences

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) represents a major health challenge in Taiwan, where it accounts for the vast majority of esophageal cancer cases. Over recent decades, advances in early detection, staging modalities, and multimodal treatment strategies have significantly improved patient outcomes. This chapter provides an overview of Taiwan’s contemporary management of ESCC, drawing primarily on evidence from Taiwanese institutional, multicenter, and population-based studies, including epidemiology, diagnostic pathways, endoscopic resection techniques for superficial tumors, and current surgical practices. The rapid adoption of minimally invasive and robot-assisted approaches has further enhanced perioperative safety and nodal dissection quality. Perioperative therapy—including neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy, adjuvant treatments, and emerging immunotherapy—continues to evolve, shaped by both clinical evidence and real-world considerations such as accessibility and reimbursement. Ongoing nationwide efforts toward standardization, data consolidation, and prospective research aim to optimize long-term oncologic and quality-of-life outcomes for patients with ESCC in Taiwan.