Even though esophageal cancer is not a common disease in the United States as it is in the African and Asian nations, the death toll by the disease crosses the thousand mark year after year in the United States alone. If medical estimates by US researchers are to be believed, the lifetime risk associated with the ailment is 1:200. Over the last decade, however, esophageal cancer treatment has improved significantly, which in turn has reduced the number of esophageal cancer casualties. Before we move on to esophageal cancer survival rates, let's take a brief account of the ailment, its causes, symptoms and treatment.
Esophageal Cancer Overview
As its name suggests, esophageal cancer is a medical condition characterized by the development of cancerous cells in the esophagus, a tube like structure extending from the throat to the stomach. Different types of esophageal cancer are determined on the basis of cells that are affected by the ailment. Although there are many causes of esophageal cancer, the prominent ones are smoking or tobacco abuse and excessive drinking. Esophageal cancer symptoms include weight loss, coughing, heartburn, indigestion, etc. The ailment can be diagnosed by various tests including biopsy, endoscopy and X-ray of the chest. The measures of treatment used to cure this cancer include chemotherapy, radiation therapy or at times even surgery. It's a life-threatening condition which causes thousands of deaths across the world every year.
Survival Rate of Esophageal Cancer
Survival rates are very low for esophageal cancer. The cancerous cells start growing inside the esophagus and then spread outwards. Due to this the esophageal cancer survival rate goes on decreasing with every passing stage, wherein the ailment gets more severe. Basically, there are 4 stages of esophageal cancer, as the patient crosses over from one stage to another the chances of survival of the ailment goes on diminishing. In fact, stage IV esophageal cancer survival rate, wherein the cancer spreads to other organs in the body, are almost none. The following table depicting the survival rates and characteristics of each stage of esophageal cancer, will make it easier for you to understand the concept.
Esophageal Cancer Survival Rates by Stage
| Stages of Esophageal Cancer | Characteristics | Relative 5 Year Survival Rate (%) |
| O | Cancerous cells are confined to the inner most layer or epithelium. | 70 |
| I | Cancerous cells invasion goes beyond the epithelium to the submucosa. | 60 |
| II A | The cells spread further, invading the muscle layer of the esophagus, and most probably even the adventitia. | 40 |
| II B | The cells spread beyond the epithelium, but haven't invaded the adventitia as yet. | 20 |
| III | The cells have invaded the adventitia and spread further to nearby lymph nodes or even to the nearby organs. | 15 |
| IV A | The cells have spread to distant lymph nodes. | 15 |
| IV B | Cancerous cells have spread to distant lymph nodes and/or other organs. | Below 5 |
The TNM system, constituted by the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC), is used to group esophageal cancer into different stages. If esophageal cancer is diagnosed in the very first stage, the chances of survival are above 60 percent, but as diagnosis is delayed, the survival rate goes on decreasing. Comparatively, stage three esophageal cancer survival rate goes well below 20 percent, making survival almost impossible. As you seen in the table above, stage 4 esophageal cancer survival rates are divided into two parts - A and B. In the first case, the cancer spreads to distant lymph nodes, but still there are 15 percent chances of survival. In the second case, however, the cancerous cells spread to lymph nodes as well as other organs which makes the ailment more grave and the chances of survival more dim. Stage 4A and stage 3 esophageal cancer survival rates are similar, but that doesn't mean they provide any good picture of individuals health which continues deteriorating rapidly.
Esophageal cancer statistics reveals that males are more vulnerable to the disease than females. The incidence of the ailment, which also increases with age, is observed to be highest among the people in the age group of 55 to 80. The average esophageal cancer survival rate for all stages combined adds up to 17 percent, which is indeed a matter of concern according to medical fraternity across the world.source
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