Department of Oncology, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh EH4 2XU, Scotland, UK. drcamidge@talk21.com
Dysphagia occurs in only a small percentage of patients with lung cancer, but the frequency of this cancer means that large numbers are affected. Non-quantitative analysis of a large Scottish series of lung cancer cases indicates the following eight broad categories of dysphagia according to underlying mechanisms: mediastinal disease; cervical lymphadenopathy; brainstem lesions; gastrointestinal tract metastases; associated systemic disorders; second primaries; oropharyngeal and oesophageal infections; and radiation-induced oesophageal toxicity.