Objective: This study was performed to assess the efficacy and safety of preoperative concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy for esophageal cancer and its value in improving survival rate. Methods: Eighty patients at II B and III clinical stages and without contraindications for surgery and radiochemotherapy were selected in the study. They were randomly assigned into two groups with 40 patients in each group. Patients in combined therapy group were given two cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (5-fluorouracil 500 mg/m2 + cisplatin 75 mg/m2) and the concurrent radiotherapy. Linear accelerator machine produced radiation at the dosage of 40 Gy. The tumor was resected at 3-5 weeks after concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Patients in the control group received surgery alone. SPSS software was used to perform χ2 test and make survival rate analysis. Results: The radical resection rates were 97.5% and 90% in the combined therapy group and control group, respectively. TNM staging was significantly decreased in the combined therapy group than that in the control group; there was no significant difference in the incidence of postoperative complications between the two groups. The postoperative survival rate of the combined therapy group was significantly higher than that of the control group. Conclusion: Preoperative adjuvant chemoradiotherapy markedly increased the radical resection rate and survival rate, decreased the TNM staging and regional lymph node metastasis, and suppressed local recurrence and distal metastasis.