Esophageal Cancer

Meeting podcast: Listen to nationally regarded GI cancer specialist and clinical researcher, Peter C. Enzinger, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discuss new developments and trends in the management of esophageal cancer. More »

Although still relatively uncommon in Western countries, esophageal cancer is fatal in the vast majority of cases. In the United States, an estimated 16,470 new cases will be diagnosed in the year 2009, and 14,530 deaths will result from the disease. This high percentage of deaths rivals that of pancreatic cancer and is more than four times that of rectal cancer. More »

Turmeric, or curcumin (diferuloylmethane), may be a favorable agent for the prevention and treatment of esophageal cancer, according to researchers at the Cork Cancer Research Center and Mercy University Hospital in Cork, Ireland. The authors noted that turmeric was able to induce cell death by a mechanism that is not reliant on apoptosis induction. More »

BARRX Medical, Inc, a global technology leader in treating Barrett's esophagus, announced the publication of two related European trials that report a 100% eradication rate for early esophageal cancer and precancerous dysplasia using endoscopic resection followed by ablation therapy with the HALO ablation system. Barrett's esophagus is a complication of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and is a known risk factor for esophageal cancer, the fastest growing cancer in the Western world. More »

The use of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in resectable esophageal cancer was bolstered by the results of two trials presented at the 2008 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium. More »

DUBLIN -- For esophageal-cancer patients, a node-negative status after neoadjuvant chemoradiation is the best predictor of the outcome of surgery, researchers here found. More »

SEATTLE -- Aspirin and other NSAIDs decrease the risk of progression of the most aggressive form of Barrett's esophagus to esophageal cancer, researchers here reported. More »

LAS VEGAS -- A diet heavy in carbohydrates might tip the scales in favor of a cascade of factors that lead to esophageal cancer, according to a study reported here. More »

Based on positive results from the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 85-01 trial, the conventional nonsurgical treatment of esophageal carcinoma is combined-modality therapy. Dose intensification of the RTOG 85-01 regimen, examined in the Intergroup (INT)-0123/RTOG 94-05 trial, did not improve local control or survival. Areas of clinical investigation include the development of combined-modality therapy regimens with newer systemic agents, the use of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose... More »

Based on positive results from the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 85-01 trial, the conventional nonsurgical treatment of esophageal carcinoma is combined-modality therapy. Dose intensification of the RTOG 85-01 regimen, examined in the Intergroup (INT)-0123/RTOG 94-05 trial, did not improve local control or survival. Areas of clinical investigation include the development of combined-modality therapy regimens with newer systemic agents, the use of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose... More »