BACKGROUND Dysplasia and adenocarcinoma developing in Barrett's esophagus (BE) are not always endoscopically identifiable. Molecular markers are needed for early recognition of these focal lesions and to identify patients at increased risk of developing adenocarcinoma. The aim of the current study was to correlate increased telomerase activity (TA) with dysplasia and adenocarcinoma occurring in...

The incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma and adenocarcinoma of the gastric cardia has increased so substantially in the last two decades that adenocarcinoma now accounts for approximately one half of esophageal malignancies seen in the United States and Europe. The reasons for this histological change may be related to a parallel increase in the incidence of gastroesophageal reflux disease in...

BACKGROUND Important risk factors for esophageal adenocarcinoma and its precursor, Barrett's esophagus, include gastroesophageal reflux disease, obesity, and cigarette smoking. Recently, genome-wide association studies have identified seven germline single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) that are associated with risk of Barrett's esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma. Whether these genetic sus...

PURPOSE This study was designed to evaluate molecular markers for the detection of micrometastasis in esophageal adenocarcinoma, define algorithms to distinguish positive from benign lymph nodes and to validate these findings in an independent tissue set and in patients with p(N0) esophageal adenocarcinoma. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Potential markers were identified through literature and database ...

BACKGROUND Persons with Barrett's esophagus experience increased incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma and may benefit from use of preventives. Studies suggest that statin medications may have chemopreventive properties; we therefore assessed the association between statin use and progression to esophageal adenocarcinoma. METHODS In a prospective cohort of 411 persons with Barrett's, Cox reg...

Barrett's esophagus is a condition in which the normal stratified squamous epithelium of the distal esophagus is replaced by intestinal metaplasia. For more than three decades, the prevailing clinical paradigm has been that Barrett's esophagus is a complication of symptomatic reflux disease that predisposes to esophageal adenocarcinoma. However, no clinical strategy for cancer prevention or ear...

Barrett’s esophagus is a condition in which the normal stratified squamous epithelium of the distal esophagus is replaced by intestinal metaplasia. For more than three decades, the prevailing clinical paradigm has been that Barrett’s esophagus is a complication of symptomatic reflux disease that predisposes to esophageal adenocarcinoma. However, no clinical strategy for cancer prevention or ear...

The incidence of esophageal cancer continues to rise in the Western world. Prior studies have suggested that gastroduodenal content reflux from gastroesophageal reflux disease induces the inflammation-mediated progression from hyperplasia to metaplasia, and to adenocarcinoma. We further investigated the sequential development of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EADC) with the use of an established su...

Barrett's esophagus predisposes affected patients to the development of esophageal adenocarcinoma. The development of adenocarcinoma proceeds along a progression through low- and high-grade dysplasia. Surveillance of Barrett's patients requires serial endoscopic investigations and grading mucosal biopsies. Unfortunately, grading of biopsies by conventional hematoxylin and eosin staining is frau...

Incidence of adenocarcinomas of the esophagus and gastric cardia has risen dramatically over the past 2 decades in the U. S., for reasons that are not yet clear. A number of common medications (e.g., calcium channel blockers, tricyclic antidepressants, and certain asthma medications) promote gastroesophageal reflux by relaxing the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). Reflux is thought to increase ...