Objective: To study the efficacy of concurrent chemoradiotherapy or radiotherapy alone in postoperative patient with N1 esophageal carcinoma. Methods: From October 2003 to October 2005,68 eligible patients with N1 esophageal carcinoma were randomized into radiotherapy alone group(RT,34 cases) and concurrent chemoradiotherapy group(CRT,34 cases). The schedules of radiotherapy in both groups were same,with 3-DCRT with conventional fractionation,and total dose is 54 Gy. The regiment of chemotherapy for the CRT group was consisted of DDP and 5-Fu for 2 cycles . It started on the first day of radiotherapy and repeated since the 29 day. Results: The overall survival rates at 1-,3-,and 5-year were 70.5%,38.2%,and 26.5% in the RT group,73.5%,47.1%,and 35.3% in the CRT group,respectively(P = 0.359);and the disease-free survival rates at 1-,3-,and 5-year were 58.8%,26.5%,and 14.7% in the RT group,64.7%,47.1%,and 26.5% in the CRT group respectively. The acute toxicity of chemoradiotherapy in the CRT group were higher than the RT group;later toxicity of two groups were similar. Conclusion: There was a trend of better survival in postoperative patient with N1 esophageal carcinoma treated with CRT than with the RT alone. However,the acute toxicity of chemoradiotherapy in the CRT group was higher than the RT group.