Esophageal cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the esophagus.

The esophagus is the hollow, muscular tube that moves food and liquid from the throat to the stomach. The wall of the esophagus is made up of several tissue layers, including mucous membrane (inner lining), muscle, and connective tissue. Esophageal cancer starts in the inner lining of the esophagus and spreads outward through the other layers as it grows.

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The two most common types of esophageal cancer are named for the type of cells that become cancerous:

See the following PDQ summaries for more information about esophageal cancer:

Esophageal cancer is found more often in men.

Rates of esophageal cancer cases and deaths have decreased slightly over recent years. Men are about four times more likely than women to develop esophageal cancer, and the chance of people developing it increases with age. White men are more likely to develop esophageal cancer and have higher death rates from it than Black men across all age groups. Before age 69 years, Black women are more likely to develop esophageal cancer and have higher death rates from it than White women. After age 69 years, the likelihood of developing esophageal cancer and dying of it are higher among White women than Black women.

In the United States, rates of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus rose rapidly through the 1990s, overtaking rates of squamous cell carcinoma. Although the rates of squamous cell carcinoma are declining overall, they remain much higher among Black men than White men, while adenocarcinoma rates are higher among White men.

Avoiding risk factors and increasing protective factors may help prevent cancer.

Avoiding cancer risk factors may help prevent certain cancers. Risk factors include smoking, having overweight, and not getting enough exercise. Increasing protective factors such as quitting smoking and exercising may also help prevent some cancers. Talk to your doctor or other health care professional about how you might lower your risk of cancer.

The risk factors and protective factors for squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus and adenocarcinoma of the esophagus are not the same.

The following risk factors increase the risk of squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus:

The following protective factors may decrease the risk of squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus:

The following risk factors increase the risk of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus:

The following protective factors may decrease the risk of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus.

Cancer prevention clinical trials are used to study ways to prevent cancer.

Cancer prevention clinical trials are used to study ways to lower the risk of certain types of cancer. Some cancer prevention trials are conducted with healthy people who have not had cancer but who have an increased risk for cancer. Other prevention trials are conducted with people who have had cancer and are trying to prevent another cancer of the same type or to lower their chance of developing a new type of cancer. Other trials are done with healthy volunteers who are not known to have any risk factors for cancer.

The purpose of some cancer prevention clinical trials is to find out whether actions people take can prevent cancer. These may include eating fruits and vegetables, exercising, quitting smoking, or taking certain medicines, vitamins, minerals, or food supplements.

New ways to prevent esophageal cancer are being studied in clinical trials.

Information about clinical trials supported by NCI can be found on NCI’s clinical trials search webpage. Clinical trials supported by other organizations can be found on the ClinicalTrials.gov website.

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Physician Data Query (PDQ) is the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) comprehensive cancer information database. The PDQ database contains summaries of the latest published information on cancer prevention, detection, genetics, treatment, supportive care, and complementary and alternative medicine. Most summaries come in two versions. The health professional versions have detailed information written in technical language. The patient versions are written in easy-to-understand, nontechnical language. Both versions have cancer information that is accurate and up to date and most versions are also available in Spanish.

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Purpose of This Summary

This PDQ cancer information summary has current information about esophageal cancer prevention. It is meant to inform and help patients, families, and caregivers. It does not give formal guidelines or recommendations for making decisions about health care.

Reviewers and Updates

Editorial Boards write the PDQ cancer information summaries and keep them up to date. These Boards are made up of experts in cancer treatment and other specialties related to cancer. The summaries are reviewed regularly and changes are made when there is new information. The date on each summary ("Updated") is the date of the most recent change.

The information in this patient summary was taken from the health professional version, which is reviewed regularly and updated as needed, by the PDQ Screening and Prevention Editorial Board.

Clinical Trial Information

A clinical trial is a study to answer a scientific question, such as whether one treatment is better than another. Trials are based on past studies and what has been learned in the laboratory. Each trial answers certain scientific questions in order to find new and better ways to help cancer patients. During treatment clinical trials, information is collected about the effects of a new treatment and how well it works. If a clinical trial shows that a new treatment is better than one currently being used, the new treatment may become "standard." Patients may want to think about taking part in a clinical trial. Some clinical trials are open only to patients who have not started treatment.

Clinical trials can be found online at NCI's website. For more information, call the Cancer Information Service (CIS), NCI's contact center, at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

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The best way to cite this PDQ summary is:

PDQ® Screening and Prevention Editorial Board. PDQ Esophageal Cancer Prevention. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute. Updated <MM/DD/YYYY>. Available at: https://www.cancer.gov/types/esophageal/patient/esophageal-prevention-pdq. Accessed <MM/DD/YYYY>. [PMID: 26389280]

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