It is the sixth most common cause of cancer death worldwide, yet many people do not realize they have the disease. illness.
And it is that esophageal cancer does not cause symptoms at the beginning of the suffering.
This was what happened to the former Scottish soccer player, Andy Goram, who served as a goalkeeper and played for several clubs in Scotland and England, and who recently revealed that he has esophageal cancer.
The news shocked his followers when Goram, 58, said he had been given regarding six months old.
In an interview, the former soccer player explained that he first felt sick regarding seven weeks ago when he had problems eating and drinking.
But he ignored the heartburn he suffered initially following failing to get an appointment with his GP.
Like Goram, many patients treated for esophageal cancer have talked regarding how this disease presents at first without symptoms, or with symptoms that are often easily ignored.
“I ignored him like everyone else”
Paul Sinclair, from Fife, Scotland, told the BBC that he began experiencing what “felt like gas in the lower rib cage” in September 2020. Sinclair also had the feeling that he had “eaten too much”. in one bite.”
“I ignored him like everyone else,” he says. “I felt like I had gas. She was eating well, she had no pain ».
“It was just a nuisance under my rib cage. It went on for regarding a week and a half and then I thought, ‘I’m going to see someone regarding this.’
“I went to the doctor and he sent me straight for an endoscopy. That confirmed that she had a tumor in the upper part of the stomach ».
Sinclair underwent four rounds of chemotherapy over an eight-week period before a six-week break.
He then had an 11-hour operation, which also included the removal of his spleen. She subsequently underwent “very aggressive chemotherapy” once more.
“I was very sick with both chemotherapy sessions,” he explains. “The second one was worse because you are already weak following the operation.”
“As you recover, you have to start learning to eat once moreto chew food well, to eat small portions and many meals throughout the day.
Now, three years later, Sinclair may be back in the gym for a light workout, but things will never be “quite normal.”
“You have to stay positive and be grateful for every day that you wake up,” he says.
“The most important thing is that I did not have particularly serious symptoms, but it is very necessary not to ignore them and review yourself».
What are the symptoms of esophageal cancer
The esophagus is the long tube that carries food from the throat to the stomach. The main symptoms of cancer are:
- having trouble swallowing (dysphagia)
- feel the nausea
- heartburn or reflux
- symptoms of indigestion, such as burping a lot
Other symptoms include:
- a cough that does not get better
- a hoarse voice
- loss of appetite or weight loss without trying to lose it
- feeling tired or without energy
- pain in the throat or in the middle of the chest, especially when swallowing
“You never fully recover”
Linda Moffat, who also lives in Scotland, considered herself a physically fit woman at 48, who rode a horse every day.
But in December 2014, he began to feel “that the food did not go down, as if it was sticking to me,” he recalled. “The pain increased and the food got stuck.”
“I had to throw up to unlock it. I thought it was an ulcer. We thought it was not going to be anything serious.
After a while, he says he “plucked up the courage to talk to the doctor” and was prescribed antacids. But the symptoms continued and she was sent for an endoscopy.
That revealed a “very advanced tumor” in the esophagus and this was “the beginning of a very long and difficult journey,” he explains.
“It is a very aggressive cancer and the surgery is really brutal: eight hours in the operating room,” he said. “You have chemotherapy before and following. You must learn to eat once more.”
“And you have a lot of problems with vomiting, diarrhea and pain. I think you never fully recover.”
“I’m very fortunate. My cancer was very advanced and I only had a 20% chance of survival,” she says.
“But it’s been almost seven years and I’m very happy to be alive and very grateful to everyone who helped me to be here.”
“Often this disease is called ‘the silent killer’ because the symptoms vary so much,” he adds. “You just pray that people go to the doctor soon enough.”
“The sooner the better”
Caroline Geraghty, a specialist nurse with Cancer Research UK, says that the risk of oesophageal cancer is increased by “the typical things” like smoking, drinking alcohol and gaining weight, as well as chewing tobacco.
“But having a higher risk doesn’t mean you’ll definitely get cancer,” he says. “Most people don’t know why they have esophageal cancer.”
Geraghty urged anyone who thinks they may have symptoms to go to your GP “to be sure”.
“As we know, the earlier you get to a cancer, the better chance you have,” he added.
But he stresses that for the majority of patients who do experience symptoms, they will not be related to cancer.
“We can understand why some GPs don’t send the patient directly for endoscopy to investigate; some people just need antacids,” she notes.
“But there will be other people who may require an investigation more quickly.”
