Risk Factors

One major factor is frequent exposure of the esophagus to stomach acid, or acid reflux. Having a Hiatal Hernia can cause acid reflux, which may give rise to gastric-esophageal reflux disease or GERD.

In time, GERD may develop into a condition called Barrett’s esophagus in which the cells lining the esophagus are structurally altered by long term exposure to stomach acid. Barrett’s esophagus itself does not affect the health of a person.

In time, the Barrett’s cells may develop abnormal changes known as dysplasia. Over a period of perhaps two to five years, the dysplasia may then progress to low grade, then to high grade dysplasia, and finally to cancer. Fortunately, this happens only in about 1-5% of patients with Barrett’s esophagus.

Drinking hot drinks (above 140* F or 60* C) has been linked to increased incidence of esophageal cancer.

A study of more than 50,000 people showed that those who drank about 2 to 3 mugs (700ml) of black tea a day at temperatures of 60C or above were almost twice as likely to go on to get esophageal cancer during 10 years of follow-up in the study, compared with people who drank tea at lower temperatures.

Looking at tea temperature alone:

People who took their tea at 60C or above were 41% more likely to get esophageal cancer than people who drank tea at lower temperatures

People who said they liked their tea “very hot” were more than twice as likely to get esophageal cancer than those who said they drank tea “cold/lukewarm”

People who waited less than 2 minutes to drink their tea were 51% more likely to get cancer than those who waited 6 minutes or more

Notably, few people in the study used tobacco or drank alcohol, both of which are known risk factors for esophageal cancer.

Obesity is linked to this cancer as well. Higher incidence of Esophageal Cancer is strongly correlated to the countries with higher rates of being overweight.

For adults, overweight and obesity ranges are determined by using weight and height to calculate a number called the “body mass index” (BMI) . BMI is used because, for most people, it correlates with their amount of body fat.

An adult who has a BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight .
An adult who has a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.

Cigarettes, Cigars or any other type of tobacco use is not recommended at all. Whereas some studies suggest that regular, limited consumption of red wine can actually be helpful to one’s health, little credible evidence supports tobacco use of any kind .

Smokeless tobacco use, such as chewing snuff, is no better than cigarette smoking, as direct contact with tobacco the gums and cheeks exposes the user to cancers such as oral cancer and esophageal cancer . There are many methods available for reducing tobacco use in stages, but the goal should remain the same: being healthy.

In short, for a healthier esophagus do not use tobacco.

Drinking alcohol exposes the esophagus to potentially harmful substances. Harmful alcohol exposure can be reduced by limiting frequency of intake and abstaining from harder types of alcohol such as vodka, whiskey, rum, and other hard liquor.

Alcoholic beverages can have corrosive effects on the lining of the esophagus. Minimizing or eliminating intake, especially of more harmful alcohols, can have a positive effect on the esophageal health.

Apart from the risk factors noted above, there are occupational and environmental exposures that are risk factors.

There is good evidence that there is an association between nitrosamines; organic solvents such as tetrachloroethylene (used in dry cleaning and refrigerants) and perchloroethylene (used in dry cleaning and degreasing metals); polycyclic aromatichydrocarbons (produced when coal, oil, gas, wood, garbage, and tobacco are burned), and silica.

To date, there is limited or conflicting evidence relating to exposures to chromium, and pesticides in relation to esophageal cancer.