Esophagus cancers
Esophagus cancers
Updated: 02/12/2021
© Jun Wang, MD, PhD
General
features
- Squamous cell carcinoma more common worldwide
- Squamous cell carcinoma: Higher risk in patients with a long history of smoking and alcohol consumption
- Incidence of adenocarcinoma has increased in developed countries
- More common in men than in women
- Most commonly during the sixth and seventh decades of life
Risk factors
- Squamous cell carcinoma: Alcohol and tobacco, caustic injury, betel nut, drinking scalding hot liquid, achalasia, Plummer-Vinson syndrome, etc
- Adenocarcinoma: Barrett esophagus, reflux esophagitis, obesity, tobacco
Clinical
presentations
- Usually asymptomatic at early phase
- Insidious onset, dysphagia to solids, followed by dysphagia to all food
- Extreme weight loss
- Metastasis generally occurs early
- Masses, with or without ulceration
Pathological
features
- Mass, with or without ulcer
- Squamous cell carcinoma: Cords of atypical cells with squamous differentiation
- Adenocarcinoma: more common in distal esophagus, irregular glands lined by atypical cells
Management
- Surgery
- Radiation therapy
- Chemotherapy
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