GERD Duration, Other Factors Raise Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Risk

Symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux disease (sGERD) and other factors increase the risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma exponentially with exposure duration, a recent study published online ahead of print in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention has shown.

For the study, researchers from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington, and colleagues sought to investigate the influence of sGERD and other factors on esophageal adenocarcinoma prevalence in the United States.

Results showed that among men, 77.8% (95% CI: 64.9, 85.6) of the incidence trend of esophageal adenocarcinoma is due to other factors, 13.4% (95% CI: 11.4, 17.3) to sGERD, and 8.8% (95% CI: 4.2, 13.7) to interactions between sGERD and other factors.

Researchers found that among women, 32.6% (95% CI: 27.0, 39.9) of the incidence trend is attributable to other factors, 13.6% (95% CI: 12.5, 15.9) to sGERD, and 47.4% (95% CI: 30.7, 64.6) to interactions.

Other factors included obesity, smoking, and proton pump inhibitor use.

The findings suggest that surveillance of esophageal adenocarcinoma should target patients who have had sGERD and other factors for a long duration.

Reference

1. Hazelton WD, Curtius K, Inadomi JM, et al. The role of gastroesophageal reflux and other factors during progression to esophageal adenocarcinoma. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2015. [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-15-0323-T.