ESD Specialist

What is ESD?

ESD is short for endoscopic submucosal dissection. It's an outpatient procedure the Center for Advanced Surgery team might perform if you have a tumor in your esophagus.

The procedure requires the use of a flexible, tubular imaging tool called an endoscope. Only a few practices in the United States can perform ESD due to the exceptional level of expertise it requires.

The Center for Advanced Surgery team specializes in performing ESD, helping to ensure less pain and a swifter recovery compared to open surgery and minimally invasive laparoscopic procedures.

Why would I need an ESD?

The Center for Advanced Surgery team typically performs ESD to remove cancerous tissue from your esophagus.

ESD is a valuable treatment option for Barrett's esophagus. This is a disease in which the cells in your esophagus change, which can lead to the development of esophageal cancer.

The team can also use ESD to remove cancerous tumors at an early stage before they enter the deeper layers of esophageal tissue.

ESD can be useful in assessing the severity of your cancer, a process known as staging. This enables your provider to develop the most appropriate treatment plan.

What happens when I have an ESD?

Before the procedure commences, a member of the team at the Center for Advanced Surgery inserts an intravenous (IV) line in your arm vein. The line delivers a sedative to make you feel sleepy and relaxed.

When you're ready, your provider inserts a high-definition endoscope into your mouth. They pass the endoscope down your throat to the surgery site, viewing images sent back by the camera on the endoscope.

They find the abnormal tissue or tumor and use a special tool that goes down the inside of the endoscope to mark the tissue's border. Your provider then injects the layer underneath (the submucosa) with a fluid that lifts the tissue away from the muscle wall.

Separating the tissue helps minimize any damage to healthy surrounding tissue during the next stage of the ESD.

How is the tumor removed during an ESD?

To cut out the tissue or tumor, your provider uses an electrosurgical knife. This knife doesn't have a metal blade like most knives but uses a high-frequency electrical current to incise the tissue. The electrical current helps stop bleeding as well as cutting out the tumor.

All the tissue cut away by the electrosurgical knife comes back up the endoscope. Laboratory examination afterward can confirm whether the ESD removed all the cancerous cells.

To find out more about ESD or discuss symptoms of esophageal cancer, call the Center for Advanced Surgery today or book an appointment online.

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