Abstract: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma is the predominant type of esophageal carcinoma in China which carries a poor prognosis. In recent years, many reports have demonstrates that the environment where tumor cells live is closely related to the tumor progression. Tumor cells can be influenced by tumor microenvironment in ways such as regulation of immune microenvironment, production of cytokine and angiogenesis. Based on the several important ways in which esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tumor cells can be influenced including interleukin-6 (IL-6) programmed cell death protein 1/programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD-1/ PD-L1), transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), this article demonstrated the typical pathways and their impact on prognosis. The underlying mechanisms and related targeted therapies are also mentioned to enlighten the ongoing and future research.

Key words: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, Microenvironment, Immunity, Hypoxia, Angiogenesis