What are the risk factors for Barrett's esophagus?
Chronic heartburn and acid reflux put you at risk of gastroesophageal reflux disease (acid reflux) and Barrett's esophagus because the esophagus is designed to carry food and liquid only one way: from your mouth to your stomach. The esophageal lining is sensitive to and unable to handle acid. Your stomach, however, has a lining designed to withstand acid-containing stomach (gastric) contents. Stomach acid is damaging to esophageal tissue. Repeated and long-term
exposure to stomach acid can lead to the transformation of esophageal tissue into the salmon-colored tissue characteristic of Barrett's esophagus, which is actually an acid-resistant lining similar to the lining of your stomach. Men are more likely to develop Barrett's esophagus than women are. The disease is also more common in people over the age of 60 than it is in younger adults.
The exact risk of a patient with Barrett's esophagus developing cancer is not known. Current estimates put the risk at 40 times higher than normal. Although the risk of cancer is increased, the chances of getting a cancer are quite small. Out of a population of 1 to 2 million people with Barrett's esophagus, annually between 10,000 and 15,000 people in the U.S. get the type of cancer associated with Barrett's esophagus. Another way of looking at this is that a physician would have to evaluate almost 50 patients for 10 years each to have a chance of finding a single cancer. |
