Progress in esophageal oncology during the past year has been limited. An overview is given of the most relevant contributions with respect to benign esophageal neoplasms, oncogenic factors involved in malignant tumorigenesis and new information concerning the precancerous conditions. Thereafter new aspects of diagnostics and staging are discussed together with in-depth analysis of prognostic factors. Recent data on the various modalities to palliate malignant dysphagia are compared. The article ends with an overview of special forms of malignancy.