Barrett’s esophagus

Introduction

The last few decades have seen an appreciable rise in the incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma in Western countries [1] [2] [3] [4]. The majority of esophageal cancers in the USA and Western Europe are now adenocarcinomas [2] [4]. The prognosis after a diagnosis of esophageal adenocarcinoma is generally poor, with the 5-year survival rate in patients with advanced disease being less than 20 % [5] [6]. Since Barrett’s esophagus is a recognized risk factor for esophageal adenocarcinoma, there has been a sustained research interest in this clinical entity. Several interesting abstracts on Barrett’s esophagus were presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) in Los Angeles this year.

References

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• 11 Sharma P, Armstrong D, Bergman J. et al . The development and validation of an endoscopic grading system for Barrett’s esophagus: the Prague C and M criteria [abstract].  Gastroenterology. 2006;  130 (4 Suppl 2) A121
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• 15 Lin O, Schembre D, Kozarek R. Blinded comparison of esophageal capsule endoscopy versus conventional endoscopy for diagnosis of Barrett’s esophagus in patients with chronic gastroesophageal reflux [abstract].  Gastrointest Endosc. 2006;  63 AB103
• 16 Sharma P, Rastogi A, Esquivel R. et al . Accuracy of wireless capsule endoscopy for the detection of Barrett’s esophagus [abstract].  Gastroenterology. 2006;  130 (4 Suppl 2) A262
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• 19 Kariv R, Plesec T, Bronner M. et al . The Seattle protocol for high-grade dysplasia in Barrett’s esophagus: it may not be as good as we think [abstract].  Gastroenterology. 2006;  130 (4 Suppl 2) A120
• 20 Puli S, Rastogi A, Mathur S. et al . Development of esophageal adenocarcinoma in patients with Barrett’s esophagus and high grade dysplasia undergoing surveillance: a meta-analysis and systematic review [abstract].  Gastrointest Endosc. 2006;  63(5) AB83
• 21 Sampliner R E, Fennerty B, Garewal H S. Reversal of Barrett’s esophagus with acid suppression and multipolar electrocoagulation: preliminary results.  Gastrointest Endosc. 1996;  44 532-535
• 22 Swisher S G, Deford L, Merriman K W. et al . Effect of operative volume on morbidity, mortality, and hospital use after esophagectomy for cancer.  J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2000;  119 1126-1132
• 23 Peters F, Curvers W, Kara M. et al . Stepwise radical endoscopic resection for complete removal of Barrett’s esophagus with early neoplasia [abstract].  Gastrointest Endosc. 2006;  63 AB133
• 24 Peters F, van Ball J, Rygiel A. et al . Stepwise endoscopic resection of the whole Barrett’s esophagus in patients with early neoplasia effectively removes all genetic alterations from the esophageal epithelium [abstract].  Gastroenterology. 2006;  130 (4 Suppl 2) A129
• 25 Overholt B F, Lightdale C J, Wang K K. et al . Photodynamic therapy with porfimer sodium for ablation of high-grade dysplasia in Barrett’s esophagus: international, partially blinded, randomized phase III trial.  Gastrointest Endosc. 2005;  62 488-498
• 26 Overholt B, Wang K, Burdick S. et al . A 5-year randomized phase III trial of efficacy and safety of photodynamic therapy using porfimer sodium in high-grade dysplasia in Barrett’s esophagus [abstract].  Gastrointest Endosc. 2006;  63 AB84
• 27 Pech O, Behrens A, May A. et al . Curative endoscopic therapy for Barrett’s early cancer and high grade dysplasia: long-term results in 304 patients [abstract].  Gastrointest Endosc. 2006;  63 AB84
• 28 Fleischer D, Sharma V, Reymunde A. et al . Circumferential RF ablation for non-dysplastic Barrett’s esophagus (NDBE) using the HALO³⁶⁰ ablation system (AIM trial): one-year follow-up of 100 patients [abstract].  Gastrointest Endosc. 2006;  63 AB127