The most common symptom of esophageal disease is heartburn, which is defined as a sensation of substernal burning. Chest pain without typical heartburn may occur in a variety of esophageal disorders, including gastroesophageal reflux and motor disorders such as in achalasia.
Esophagitis is inflammation in your esophagus, the swallowing tube that runs through the middle of your chest. It might feel like chest pain, or it might make swallowing painful or difficult.
Usually, esophageal cancer does not produce noticeable symptoms until the tumor has grown large enough to interfere with eating, swallowing or digesting food. In many cases, the first warning sign is difficulty swallowing (dysphagia), which can create a sensation that food is lodged in the throat.
Esophageal cancer starts on the inside lining of the esophagus and spreads outward through the other layers as it grows. The esophagus and stomach are part of the upper gastrointestinal (digestive) system. The two most common forms of esophageal cancer are named for the type of cells that become malignant (cancerous):
The most common symptom of esophageal cancer is trouble swallowing, especially a feeling of food stuck in the chest. With some patients, choking on food also occurs. These symptoms gradually worsen over time, with an increase in pain when swallowing, as your esophagus narrows from the growing cancer.
Upper endoscopy
This is an important test for diagnosing esophageal cancer. During an upper endoscopy, you are sedated (made sleepy) and then the doctor passes an endoscope (a thin, flexible tube with a light and a small video camera on the end) down your throat and into the esophagus and stomach.
What is stage 1 oesophageal cancer? Stage 1 oesophageal cancer usually means your cancer hasn't spread beyond the thick muscle in the oesophagus wall. It usually means your cancer hasn't spread to nearby lymph nodes. But some people with stage 1 squamous cell cancer can have cancer in 1 or 2 nearby lymph nodes.
Certain blood tests can also be used to help a physician confirm an esophageal cancer diagnosis. For instance, a blood test can be used to detect anemia or check liver function; esophageal cancer can sometimes cause anemia if the tumor bleeds, and it may impact liver function if the cancer spreads.
Esophagitis Symptoms
Difficult or painful swallowing. Acid reflux. Heartburn. A feeling of something of being stuck in the throat.
Eosinophilic Esophagitis Can Be Mistaken for GERD.
Barrett's oesophagus means that some cells in the lining of your food pipe have started to change. In a small number of people these cells may develop into oesophageal cancer over a long period of time.
The risk of esophageal cancer increases with age. According to the American Cancer Society , fewer than 15% of esophageal cancer diagnoses occur in people under 55 years. The median age at diagnosis is 68 years, and diagnosis is most common among those aged 65–74 years.
In addition to a complete medical history and physical examination, diagnostic procedures for esophageal cancer may include the following: chest x-ray - a diagnostic test that uses invisible electromagnetic energy beams to produce images of internal tissues, bones, and organs onto film.
Barium swallow, also called an esophagram.
Barium coats the surface of the esophagus, making a tumor or other unusual changes easier to see on the x-ray. If there is an area looks abnormal, your doctor may recommend an upper endoscopy and biopsy to find out if it is cancerous (see below).
The esophagus is a tube connecting the throat to the stomach. The mucosa and submucosa make up the inner lining of the esophagus, which is where esophageal cancers typically develop. Esophageal cancer is a treatable disease, but it is rarely curable.
Early stage cancers of the throat are small, localized, and highly curable when treated with surgery and/or radiation therapy. Early stage disease includes stage I, II, and some stage III cancers. Stage I cancer is no more than 2 centimeters in size (about 1 inch) and has not spread to lymph nodes in the area.
Gold standard/Study of choice:
Endoscopic biopsy is the gold standard test for the diagnosis of esophageal cancer.
As a widely used examination method, CT imaging can be used to help detect esophageal cancers (16). Radiologists use the abnormal thickening of the esophageal wall as the diagnostic basis to indicate the occurrence of esophageal cancer, thereby prompting the patient to further endoscopy to verify the diagnosis.
For squamous cell esophageal cancer, chemoradiotherapy is commonly recommended as the first treatment. Surgery may be used afterwards depending on how well chemoradiotherapy worked. Recent studies show using chemoradiotherapy before surgery is better than surgery alone.
Someone with esophageal cancer may experience pain in the middle of the chest that feels like pressure or burning. This discomfort can often be confused with other problems, such as heartburn, so it is difficult to recognize it as a symptom.
Swallowing problems
You might have problems swallowing if the cancer is in the food pipe. This can cause weight loss. Swallowing can be difficult and painful if the food pipe is fully or partly blocked. This might make it hard to get enough nutrition.
After entering the lymphatic system, esophageal cancer can potentially travel throughout the body and spread to distant organs and tissues. This type of cancer typically grows slowly, and it may be many years before the symptoms become noticeable. However, once the symptoms begin, the cancer progresses rapidly.