An educational resource dedicated to the prevention and control of esophageal cancer. Each year over 600,000 people in the world are diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Unfortunately most do not survive more than a year, making it the sixth most common cause of cancer-related death. Much is known about the
The esophagus (blue in figure) is a muscular tube that carries food from the back of the mouth (pharynx – green) to the stomach (red) (figure 1). Cancers that occur in this organ are often difficult to treat, in part because “alarm symptoms” such as difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) or bleeding often
info
Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Epidemiologic and clinical research has revealed many risk factors which, taken together, can help estimate a person’s probability of developing esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). These include: * demographic factors, * host and lifestyle factors, * medications, * family history, and * genetic markers. In the general population, symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux (sGERD), obesity, cigarette