My husband aged 54 was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in December and passed away in March. When diagnosed he had a pain in his left side when he was lying down at night and nothing else. Then lymph nodes in his neck became enlarged. An endoscopy and scan showed the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes in his neck and in his chest. Chemo started immediately, a 21 day cycle, from 8.30 to 4.30 on day one and then a course of tablets, 12 in all, to take for the 21 days. After 3 courses a scan showed that although the chemo was shrinking the tumor the cancer itself was causing blood clots and one had gone to his lung. He then started injecting himself in the stomach every evening, which was a 6 month course, then just before his 4th cycle of chemo he developed another blood clot in his liver. The doctors just couldn't get on top of the clots and eventually one went to his heart and killed him suddenly. We were not aware that blood clots can be caused by cancer or chemo.

I was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and had surgery in 2008. I had acid reflux for years and took meds for it. I was just feeling terrible in my chest and stomach and knew something was wrong. I had an endoscopic exam and the Dr. called to tell me that he couldn't believe it but, it was cancer. I told him I could because I had been feeling so bad. I was very fortunate it was caught early, and I didn't need any treatments. I had an esophajectomy and a stomach pull up. It isn't an easy surgery but, it beats the alternative. It is a long recovery and 2 years later I still have some discomfort, cough, and diarrhea. I continue to be checked and I am thankful I pushed the Dr's telling them how bad I felt. You do need to listen to your body and be persistent. As I said I didn't have to have treatments they felt they got it all, and I was truly blessed with that as I didn't know how I would go through treatments being so weak. It is amazing what they can do.

My husband was diagnosed with esophageal cancer on Sept. 1, 2005. He'd been having increasing trouble swallowing and has started losing weight. He went to see the doctor who sent him to a specialist to do a scope. As soon as he had the diagnosis, he was referred to a surgeon. The surgery was Sept. 29, 2005, and they removed the tumor and part of the esophagus. That December, he started chemo and radiation treatments. He had radiation for four weeks straight and four week-long rounds of chemo (first week of radiation, last week of radiation, one month later and one month after that). His pic line was removed on the final day of chemo (April 14, 2006). He goes for CT scans every six months now (in the first year it was every three months), and sees all three of his fabulous doctors to discuss the results. Three years later, he is still cancer-free, and we are more hopeful each time that the next time will also be clear. Not to scare anyone, but based on our research of this disease and our discussions with the doctors, we believe that with surgery alone, he wouldn't have survived the first year. He just turned 50 in January (2009), and we're now making long-term plans again. He's frequently tired, can't eat much at one time, and often suffers acid reflux at night. This is our "new normal," and we are happy to live with it because we still have each other and our family and are otherwise healthy. One strange side effect of all his treatments is that his immune system seems to be stronger than before. He used to catch every cold and flu bug the kids brought home; now he's seldom sick, and it's less severe when he is sick. These are small blessings for sure but blessings just the same.

I have had acid reflux for years. I thought I had it under control, one day I was sitting at home eating some scallops and rice when all of a sudden I couldn't swallow. The food wouldn't go down and it wouldn't come back up. I ran to the sink as I was losing my air. Then all of a sudden the food comes up. I was at home by myself at the time so that scared the crap out of me. I told my wife and she made me go to my doctor where they did a test. I couldn't swallow the pill they gave me until I drank three glasses of water. We knew there was a problem so we set up and endoscope. I was put to sleep and my doctor told me he could widen my esophagus and that it was a common thing. I agreed. When I woke up in the recovery room my doctor came in to see me. He told me he could not widen my esophagus. He told me that my stomach was raw so he did do a biopsy and to me call him in a couple of days. I called a few days later. The doctor told me that the results were not good and that they wanted to do a double take. He told me that the results I received usually indicate cancer. They wanted to be very aggressive in the first 30 days. I have had 30 radiation treatments and two types chemotherapy on. I recently had an X-ray and my doctors were very happy with the results. I do have a surgery coming up later this month. I am scared, but coming on to this site makes me feel better. I told a good friend at work what is going on and he is going to get tested.

I was diagnose with esophageal cancer in 2004. I only had symptoms for two and a half weeks when I went to the doctor. One day, I felt like I had food stuck in my esophagus. They did a scope and found a tumor. I had surgery and they removed my esophagus and did a stomach pull-up. The surgeon was amazed that I got into a doctor as soon as I did. I have been cancer free for more than five years. The cancer was caught soon enough and had perforated the esophageal wall, so I did not have to get any chemotherapy or radiation. My cancer was caught in stage 1. The survival rate of such a cancer is very low, I'm told. I have CT scans for more than five years before my cancer was diagnosed and everything was always fine. Listen to your body. It can save your life.