Esophageal cancer history and symptoms

Patient history in esophageal cancer includes pain in the throat or chest, regurgitation of food and hoarseness of voice. Symptoms of esophageal cancer include dysphagia, odynophagia, weight loss, and hematemesis. It should be noted that superficial esophageal cancer may have an insidious onset, so screening for Barrett’s esophagus is important in this case to diagnose cancer earlier.

Obtaining history is an important aspect of making a diagnosis of esophageal cancer. It provides an insight into severity, precipitating factors and associated comorbid conditions. Complete history will help determine the correct therapy and helps in determining the prognosis. The areas of focus should be on onset, duration, and progression of symptoms such as:^[1][2]

• Difficulty swallowing
• Painful swallowing
  • Fluids and soft foods are usually tolerated, while hard or bulky substances (such as bread or meat) cause pain during swallowing.
• Weight loss
• Pain
  • Often of a burning nature, may be severe and worsened by swallowing, and can be spasmodic in character.
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Regurgitation of food
• Coughing
• History of previous pneumonia
• Bloody cough or bloody saliva
• Hoarseness
• Vocal cord paralysis

Common symptoms include:^[3][4]

• Dysphagia to solid food
• Retrosternal or burning pain
• Weight loss
• Changes in diet
• Anorexia

Less common symptoms include:

• Regurgitation of food or saliva^[3][4]
• Hoarseness or loss of voice
• Bloody or intractable cough
• Blood in stools
• Frequent pneumonia

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