Generality
Carcinoma or malignant tumor of the esophagus is an event with a highly poor prognosis, that is, it is a disease that (due to the mostly late diagnosis) is often identified in stages that are already too advanced to be successfully treated.
The diagnosis of esophageal cancer is simple and uses technologies that leave no room for routine errors.
Tumors of the esophagus are ALMOST all malignant in nature, even if (due to the low incidence: 0.8-4.9 per 100,000 inhabitants) in our country they are of lesser clinical importance than many other neoplasms (in Italy, the most affected region is Friuli-Venezia-Giulia); on the contrary, in Russia, China and South Africa it proves to be a much more widespread disease. Cancer of the esophagus affects males more than females in a 3: 1 ratio.
Risk factors
To date there are no absolutely certain elements that can demonstrate the actual importance of risk factors with respect to the pathogenesis of esophageal cancer, however, the statistical correlations between lifestyle and esophageal cancer do NOT leave room for imagination.
