Abstract
Esophageal adenocarcinoma is the most common type of esophageal cancer in most Western countries and is an important contributor to overall cancer mortality. Most cases of esophageal adenocarcinoma are believed to arise from Barrett’s esophagus. Esophageal adenocarcinoma occurs more frequently in white men over 50 years old, as well as in people with frequent symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux, in smokers and in people who are obese. Higher consumption of fruit and vegetables, use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and infection with Helicobacter pylori have all been shown to reduce the risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. Here, we review the epidemiological evidence for the major risk factors of esophageal adenocarcinoma and also discuss perspectives for future research.
Introduction
Worldwide, esophageal cancer is the eighth most common malignancy and the sixth leading cause of cancer mortality. Recent estimates suggest 482,000 new cases of esophageal cancer arise worldwide each year, resulting in 407,000 deaths (Ferlay et al., ). The lifetime risk of esophageal cancer in the United States is about 1 in 125 men and about 1 in 400 women (American Cancer Society, ). Two predominant histopathologic types of esophageal cancer are recognized: squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and adenocarcinoma (EAC). In Western countries, the rate of increase in EAC incidence during the past four decades has been among the highest for any cancer (Pohl and Welch, 2005). Prognosis for patients with EAC is strongly related to stage at diagnosis, however most patients are diagnosed with late-stage disease and less than 20% survive for 5 years (Stavrou et al., 2009).
The last two decades have seen increasing research attention given to the epidemiology of EAC. Numerous population-based epidemiological studies have examined EAC risk factors; however the small size of these individual studies has limited the precision of resulting risk estimates and reconciling inconsistent findings have proven difficult. Valuable insights have been gained from the output from the Barrett’s and Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Consortium (BEACON), a collaborative project which has pooled the data from 12 of these studies (http://bea.tlvcloud.org/), thereby conferring greater statistical precision. The analyses combine 10 case–control studies and 2 cohort studies from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and Sweden, involving more than 2,100 EAC patients and almost 14,000 population controls (Cook et al., ). Much of the discussion and conclusions regarding risk factors in this review is based on these pooled analyses; where appropriate other articles have also been cited.
Most cases of EAC are believed to arise from underlying Barrett’s esophagus (BE), a premalignant condition in which the normal stratified squamous epithelium of the distal esophagus is replaced by specialized columnar epithelium (Falk, ). Here, we will provide an overview of the descriptive epidemiology of EAC and BE, and provide a summary of the risk factors for these conditions. This review is restricted to the effects of host characteristics and environmental exposures, and does not address risks associated with constitutional genotypes, since several large-scale genome-wide association studies are being conducted currently and will publish their findings shortly.
Descriptive Epidemiology
Incidence rates for EAC have increased sharply during the past four decades in developed countries, with a reported seven-fold (0.36–2.56 per 100,000) increase in the United States between 1973 and 2006 (Pohl et al., 2010). Increases in incidence of similar magnitude have been reported among populations residing in Australia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom (Botterweck et al., ; Vizcaino et al., 2002; Bosetti et al., ; Cook et al., ; Stavrou et al., 2009). As a result of these increases, EAC became the most common form of esophageal cancer in the United States and most other Western countries in the late 1990s (Curado et al., ; Holmes and Vaughan, ). In all populations, the greatest increase in incidence has been observed among older white men. However, incidence rates have also increased significantly among other ethnic groups, in women, and in people less than 65 years old (Holmes and Vaughan, ; Brown et al., ).
Figure 1 presents the age-adjusted annual incidence rates for EAC from a broad geographical range of cancer registries and highlights the considerable international variation in EAC incidence (Curado et al., ). Notably, rates also vary among different ethnic groups within a particular country. For example, in the United States, compared with non-Hispanic whites, the incidence of EAC is significantly lower among Hispanic whites, Blacks, Asians, and Pacific Islanders (Cook et al., ). Migration studies have shown that EAC rates tend to approach those of the country of adoption rather than the country of origin, suggesting variation within countries is unlikely to be fully explained by racial or genetic differences. Another remarkable feature is the sex ratio, with most populations reporting more than five-fold higher incidence in men than women (Curado et al., ). EAC is rare among young persons (80% of EAC cases are aged 55–70 years) and incidence increases with age (mean age at diagnosis is 60 years; Yang and Davis, 1988; Lagergren, 2005).
Figure 1
Barrett’s esophagus
As the precursor to EAC, BE is frequently asymptomatic, prevalence is largely unknown and it is thought that a large percentage of the general population may have undiagnosed BE (Cameron et al.,
Analyses of temporal trends for BE patients have failed to determine whether BE incidence has truly increased. While several studies have investigated the recent increases in diagnosis of BE, it remains unclear whether the observed increase in incidence of BE is real or whether increased awareness and widespread use of endoscopy have resulted in more diagnoses (Prach et al., 1997; van Soest et al., 2005; Kendall and Whiteman,
Overall, the associations between sociodemographic characteristics and the risk of BE are similar to those for EAC. Epidemiological data suggest a 2:1 male predominance for BE (Cook et al.,
Cancer risk in barrett’s esophagus
Adenocarcinoma is thought to arise through a progressive sequence, whereby the abnormal columnar epithelium that characterizes BE progresses to low-grade dysplasia, then to high-grade dysplasia and finally to carcinoma (Hamilton and Smith,
Environmental Exposures
Esophageal adenocarcinoma is a multifactorial disease. The temporal trends in epidemiology and the effect of migration on incidence suggest that environmental factors play an important role in the etiology of EAC (Table 1).
Table 1
| Risk factors | Magnitude of risk |
|---|---|
| ESTABLISHED RISK FACTORS | |
| Geographical region (Western countries) | ++ |
| Male gender | ++ |
| Caucasian race | ++ |
| Barrett’s esophagus | ++ |
| Gastroesophageal reflux | ++ |
| Obesity | ++ |
| Tobacco smoking | + |
| Dietary fats | + |
| ESTABLISHED PROTECTIVE FACTORS | |
| Fruit and vegetables consumption | − − |
| Dietary antioxidants | − − |
| Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs | − − |
| H. pylori infection | − − |
| NOT ASSOCIATED | |
| Total alcohol consumption | 0 |
| Carbonated soft drinks | 0 |
| EQUIVOCAL FACTORS | |
| Hot beverages (tea and coffee) | ? |
Summary of risk factors for esophageal adenocarcinoma.
0, no association; +, low to moderate increase in risk; ++, moderate to high increase in risk; − −, moderate to high decrease in risk; ?, ambiguous studies.
Gastroesophageal reflux
Gastroesophageal reflux (GER), a condition that occurs when the lower esophageal sphincter allows stomach acid to flow back into the esophagus, is becoming increasingly common in Western populations (Ness-Jensen et al., 2011). Long-standing GER is a major risk factor predisposing to the development of BE and EAC, and is thought to play a role in progression from BE to cancer. A recent meta analysis of five large population-based case–control studies reported that the relative risks of EAC associated with at least weekly GER symptoms and daily symptoms are around five and seven, respectively (Rubenstein and Taylor, 2010). There is also general agreement that chronic GER is the main cause of BE (Falk,
Due to the role of GER in the development of EAC, various acid suppression therapies have been used to reduce esophageal acid exposure in BE patients. Findings to date suggest that acid-suppressant medications may reduce the risk of progression from BE to cancer (El-Serag et al.,
The biological mechanisms whereby GER causes BE and influences the development of EAC is still unclear. Two main hypotheses have arisen in response to experimental and epidemiological data. The prevailing hypothesis is that chronic reflux of acid or bile injures the esophageal epithelium, inducing a cascade of cytokine responses that result in inflammation and cell proliferation, thereby initiating the metaplasia–dysplasia–neoplasia sequence (Yoshida, 2007). The second hypothesis is that GER may cause the production of nitrous oxide from ingested nitrites, leading to elevated levels of DNA damage and enhanced risk of disease through increasing the likelihood of genetic change (Clemons et al.,
Obesity
Obesity is one of the strongest risk factors for EAC, but less so for BE. Population-based studies have consistently reported that a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30.0 kg/m2 is associated with two- to three-fold increased risk of EAC (Corley et al.,
Despite the strong associations between BMI and EAC risk, there is some doubt as to whether the rise in obesity explains all of the increase in EAC incidence and whether BMI increases risk independently of obesity-related inflammation. A recent study has suggested that the increase in EAC incidence preceded the rise in obesity prevalence by a decade (Abrams et al.,
Smoking
Studies have consistently found a strong association between tobacco smoking and EAC and, to a lesser extent, BE. Pooled analyses estimate an approximate two-fold increased risk of EAC associated with ever smoking, and a strong dose–response association with cumulative exposure (Cook et al.,
Diet
Dietary factors may partially explain aspects of risk variation by sex, ethnicity and nationality, and may also account for some of the changes in EAC incidence observed among migrants. While many aspects of the role of diet on EAC and BE etiology remain unclear, observational studies have reported that high levels of consumption of saturated fat and processed meat, low fruit and vegetable consumption, low dietary antioxidant intake, and low intakes of certain minerals are all associated with increased risks of both EAC and BE (Mayne et al., 2001; Anderson et al.,
Medication use
A prominent hypothesis posits that medications inducing relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter (including calcium channel blockers, benzodiazepines, and asthma medications, among others) may promote GER, thereby indirectly increasing the risks of BE and EAC. Epidemiological studies have examined their association with EAC, with inconsistent findings (Chow et al.,
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
There is consistent evidence from observational studies that frequent users of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have reduced risks of EAC (Corley et al.,
Helicobacter pylori infection
Helicobacter pylori is a Gram-negative bacterium that persistently colonizes the human stomach (Suerbaum and Michetti, 2002; Blaser and Atherton,
Conclusion
Since the 1970s, the incidence of EAC has increased sharply in most Western countries. Explanations commonly offered to explain this change in epidemiology of EAC include the rising prevalences of central obesity and reflux among white men, although quantifying the overall contribution of these factors remains the subject of investigation. Given the rising prevalence of obesity worldwide, especially in developing countries, and the links between obesity, inflammation, and cancer, it is clear that a better understanding of these relationships is required to yield more targeted strategies for cancer prevention. It is anticipated that research currently being conducted will provide a better understanding of the interplay between inherited susceptibility and environmental factors. In the future, it is possible that such knowledge will be applied to develop tools which will enable patients and clinicians to quantify an individual’s absolute risk of developing esophageal cancer and thereby make appropriate decisions to improve outcomes.
Statements
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Abbreviations
BE, Barrett’s esophagus; EAC, esophageal adenocarcinoma; ESCC, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma; GER, gastroesophageal reflux; NSAIDs, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
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Summary
Keywords
esophageal adenocarcinoma, Barrett’s esophagus, epidemiology, risk factors
Citation
Thrift AP, Pandeya N and Whiteman DC (2012) Current Status and Future Perspectives on the Etiology of Esophageal Adenocarcinoma. Front. Oncol. 2:11. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2012.00011
Received
30 November 2011
Accepted
17 January 2012
Published
13 February 2012
Volume
2 - 2012
Edited by
Mohandas K. Mallath, Tata Memorial Centre, India
Reviewed by
Farhad Islami, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, USA; Farin Kamangar, Morgan State University, USA
Copyright
© 2012 Thrift, Pandeya and Whiteman.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial License, which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in other forums, provided the original authors and source are credited.
*Correspondence: David C. Whiteman, Cancer Control Laboratory, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Locked Bag 2000, Royal Brisbane Hospital, QLD 4029, Australia. e-mail: david.whiteman@qimr.edu.au
This article was submitted to Frontiers in Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention, a specialty of Frontiers in Oncology.
Disclaimer
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