Data of esophageal cancer patients autopsies for 1977-1986 were collected from hospitals of Leningrad and Petrozavodsk and subjected to analysis. Gastrostomy had been carried out in 255 out of 847 (29.1%) cases studied. 83.4% of the operated patients died within one month whereas only 2.1% survived over one year. The majority of patients were evidently operated too late in the course of disease. 148 (58.1%) operated cases died due to progression and the other 107 (41.9%) died of complications of the surgical procedure and postoperative period, mainly pneumonia and peritonitis. 106 cases of the latter group died during the first month following gastrostomy.