What are the symptoms of esophageal cancer?

Symptoms of ESOPHAGEAL CANCER are: (1) Chest pain. (2) Difficulty swallowing food or water. (3) Black, shiny stool. (4) Recent weight loss. (5) Heartburn; painful burning feeling in the chest or throat. (6) Chest tightness

Esophageal Cancer Quiz

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Reviewed By:

Aiko Yoshioka, MD (Gastroenterology)

Dr. Yoshioka graduated from the Niigata University School of Medicine. He worked as a gastroenterologist at Saiseikai Niigata Hospital and Niigata University Medical & Dental Hospital before serving as the Deputy Chief of Gastroenterology at Tsubame Rosai Hospital and Nagaoka Red Cross Hospital. Dr. Yoshioka joined Saitama Saiseikai Kawaguchi General Hospital as Chief of Gastroenterology in April 2018.

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Learn more about Esophageal cancer

Content updated on Sep 20, 2022

What is esophageal cancer?

Cancer of the esophagus (food pipe). Known risk factors include alcohol, smoking and gastric acid reflux.

Symptoms of esophageal cancer

Chest pain
Difficulty swallowing food or water
Black, shiny stool
Recent weight loss
Heartburn; painful burning feeling in the chest or throat
Chest tightness

Questions your doctor may ask to check for esophageal cancer

Your doctor may ask these questions to diagnose esophageal cancer

Do you have any chest pain?
Do you have difficulty swallowing (e.g food or water)?
Do you have stools that are black (like hair) and shiny?
Have you lost weight recently?
Do you have heartburn?

Treatment for esophageal cancer

A specialist will confirm the diagnosis and recommend a treatment plan. The main types of treatment include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, or a combination of the above.

View the symptoms of Esophageal cancer

Diseases related to Esophageal cancer

References

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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1015958416302019?via%3Dihub
Short MW, Burgers KG, Fry VT. Esophageal Cancer. Am Fam Physician. 2017 Jan 1;95(1):22-28. PMID: 28075104.
https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2017/0101/p22.html
Domper Arnal MJ, Ferrández Arenas Á, Lanas Arbeloa Á. Esophageal cancer: Risk factors, screening and endoscopic treatment in Western and Eastern countries. World J Gastroenterol. 2015 Jul 14;21(26):7933-43. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v21.i26.7933. PMID: 26185366; PMCID: PMC4499337.
https://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v21/i26/7933.htm
Kato H, Nakajima M. Treatments for esophageal cancer: a review. Gen Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2013 Jun;61(6):330-5. doi: 10.1007/s11748-013-0246-0. Epub 2013 Apr 9. PMID: 23568356.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11748-013-0246-0
Kelly RJ. Emerging Multimodality Approaches to Treat Localized Esophageal Cancer. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2019 Aug 1;17(8):1009-1014. doi: 10.6004/jnccn.2019.7337. PMID: 31390584.
https://jnccn.org/view/journals/jnccn/17/8/article-p1009.xml