September 11, 2018.
We do not know it well and yet, esophageal cancer has been wreaking havoc in France for twenty years.
Study highlights rise in esophageal cancer
Two doctors from Bordeaux have just published a study conducted in conjunction with the French Surgery Association (AFC). They note the explosion in the number of esophageal cancers since 1988 in France. ” In 2017, there were 4,800 new cases of esophageal cancer in France “, detail the surgeons Denis Collet and Caroline Gronnier who both work in hospitals in Bordeaux.
Their work made it possible to identify the population category most at risk of contracting this disease. Among the sick, men are indeed more affected than women with 1 woman for 6 men on average. Another observation is that the majority of cancer develops after the age of 60, regardless of gender.
Two main risk factors
Surgeons explain this increase in esophageal cancer by two risk factors: obesity (which affects more and more French people) and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). “GERD causes alterations in the esophageal mucosa (Barrett’s esophagus): these are associated with a 50 to 100 times greater risk of developing cancer”, says Caroline Gronnier.
Obesity is often coupled with GERD but according to specialists, it is sufficient on its own to cause cancer of the esophagus. ” The increased risk of cancer is not linked only to GERD: obesity is likely to act on its own through the inflammatory and immune changes it induces. »Thus, in case of GERD or difficulty swallowing, consult your doctor. An endoscopy is enough to find an abnormality and surgery can cure the cancer.
Maylis Choné
