Esophageal cancer is the fastest growing cancer in the U.S., with a new case diagnosed every 31 minutes.  What many people don’t know is that gastroesophageal reflux disease – or GERD – can actually be a risk factor for esophageal cancer.
Bart Frazzitta of Manalapan, N.J., said he had suffered from GERD for as long as he could remember, but never thought it was anything serious – until the day he found out his chronic acid reflux could be to blame for his cancer diagnosis.
Before his diagnosis, Frazzitta had experienced minimal symptoms – the reason he went to visit the doctor was because he kept choking on his food.
“I had a steak, and I took a bite of the steak, and all of a sudden got a tremendous pain in my esophagus; and I jumped up from the table,†Frazzitta said. “…As I stood up a piece of meat must have cleared. The pain went away.â€
Frazzitta said for the rest of the week he made sure to chew his food carefully, but the same thing happened again while eating a burger.
Frazzitta called his doctor, who scheduled an upper GI series for the next morning. Â In the afternoon, his doctor called back with bad news: Â The test results indicated he had esophageal cancer.
According to Dr. Raja Flores, a thoracic surgeon at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, Frazzitta’s acid reflux could have predisposed him for developing a condition called Barrett’s esophagus, which is a precursor for esophageal cancer.
Other risk factors for esophageal cancer include age, gender, smoking, being overweight and drinking alcohol.
Frazzitta’s treatment involved four hours of chemotherapy, five days a week, as well as radiation.  Even so, doctors told him he only had a five to 10 percent chance of living for five years. Â
His best option for survival was an eight-hour procedure, where doctors hoped to remove the tumors from his esophagus and the diseased tissue in the surrounding areas. Â Frazzitta and his wife decided to go through with it, and the surgery was a success.
Now Frazzitta is the president of the Esophageal Cancer Education Foundation, which he founded in order to raise awareness of the disease and fund research for early detection and treatment. Â With the help of an advisory board, the foundation also published a guide for patients going through surgery.
“If we can shine a light on this disease and save somebody as a result of what we do that’s what it’s all about,†Frazzitta said.