Abstract: OBJECTIVE To analyze the effects and mechanism of sevoflurane and propofol on patients with esophageal cancer of one lung ventilation in department of thoracic surgery of pulmonary oxygenation during and after operation. METHODS The 90 cases of esophageal cancer with one lung ventilation of thoracic surgery were selected, whose ASA grade were I-Ⅱ, which were randomly divided into the control group and the study group, with 45 cases in each group. The control group were given intravenous propofol, while the study group were given sevoflurane for anesthesia. The heart rate, mean arterial pressure, peak inspiratory pressure and pulse oxygen saturation were compared between the two groups. The oxygenation index of the two groups were measured after collecting blood samples. The expression of NF-κB in two groups were detected by immunohistochemistry, and the complications of the two groups were recorded. RESULTS The levels of heart rate, mean arterial pressure, peak inspiratory pressure and pulse oxygen saturation during and after operation showed no significant difference between the two groups (P all>0.05); the levels of intraoperative and postoperative pulse oxygen saturation and oxygenation index in the study group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P all<0.05), while the levels of intraoperative and postoperative arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide showed no significant difference between the two groups (P all>0.05). The NF-κB level of lung tissue was lower than that of the control group and the incidence rate of postoperative respiratory difficulties was significantly lower than that of the control group (P<0.05), while the incidence rate of other complications showed no significant difference between the two groups (P all>0.05). CONCLUSION Compared with propofol, sevoflurane can significantly improve the oxygenation function of patients with esophageal cancer of one lung ventilation, and the mechanism may be raleted to the inhibition of NF-κB expression.