Hi Loopy42

I agree with everything you have said.  This is such a tricky cancer to detect until it's too late (in many cases).  It is one of the fastest growing, in terms of number of diagnoses, in the western world and one of the most fatal, in terms of patients dying from it, and yet it is woefully under researched.  The problem is, of course, funding.  And whilst oesphageal cancer is huge in terms of numbers dying from it, it does not have the PR machine behind it that Bowel and Breast cancer have, not to take anything away from either of those cancers or to cause offence - just stating a fact..  I've sent you a friend invite if you want to "talk".

Ruth

Reading this really saddened me. My Dad was diagnosed  with stage four squamous cell carcinoma of the oesophagus in January of this year 2021. It had already metastised to distant lymph nodes in the neck. 
I agree with everything you said, this needs to be screened from what I have seen it is the most horrific of cancers. The pain and suffering it causes is unbearable and begins even before the correct diagnosis is made. 
 

I'm writing this two years after your post and still nothing has changed. Even symptoms are still not better managed. My dads pain is somewhat better controlled but the overproduction of mucus and secretions have made his days and nights unbearable. His initial stent migrated and blocked any food from passing through so after three attempts was removed. But he has a 16cm tumour running along the length the oesophgus. So although he was sent on his way without any further plan for him after stent removed very quickly a few days later Dad was struggling with taking any liquid in. We had to go to a and e for him then to be given an ng to be fed by this. He had been stuck in hospital for four weeks now. He was given glycopyrronium for the secretions but this reduces them but makes them even hard to cough up as they are so thick so Dad spend hours and hours coughing and retching, it deprives him of sleep and energy. It is torturous. Thousands of people have come before my Dad and thousands will come after. Something needs to change. 

I am so sorry to hear you are going through this , it's as painful for you as a family member as it is the patient as you just feel so helpless . 
I had a meeting with the oncologists and so called 'specialists in this field ' and realistically they don't seem to be further forward . The only real way is early diagnosis as is easier to treat as I've said . 
All we can do is keep pushing these people and the press even to make early testing happen so those in the future have a better outlook . 
always here if you need a chat 

Hi Loopy42, all cancers are terrible but i agree my dad died of this type of cancer 8 weeks ago and its horrible to watch them unable to eat and drink to be tube fed and be half the man they used to be. Suffer daily with the mucus and just have no energy to do much at all. He went through alot of chemo and radio and ill never know how he got through it just being tube fed all the time it must take some strength. A stent really didnt help much at all it seems everything is against them and a struggle daily. I really feel for all those with this cancer as to watch a loved one go through this type is heartbreaking near the end  it effected his voice its just terrible. I prey one day this gets noticed sooner. The docs thought it was heartburn and never really fully did anything i feel more needs to be done but as many say this cancer does get noticed to late on when not much can be done. i dont think covid has helped any research for cancer. Here is praying more gets done for the future

Hi Tashax18 and Loopy 42

I am sorry for both your loss and am a regular poster on another thread ,  i also post regularly on FB encouraging people to get the right diagnosis as early as possible , i have lost both family and friends to it , unfortunately far to many men soldier on taking over the counter remedies for decades before finding out the real source of the problem , in far to many cases the tumour has already spread beyond the  oesophagus and then a curative route is unlikely , i myself had a T2N0 tumour in early  2020 and am well on the road to recovery due to an early diagnosis , it's all about getting the message across to others , get a proper diagnosis and not something from the chemists shop,  you take care  now and god bless you both.

Regards

Douglas

Thank you douglas. You are very correct that men do soldier on and ignore the problem.... well my dad did that very well till it became a bigger issue and the things given to him didnt really help. I think he was scared it was something bad, it took alot for him to then take it further. I wish you well on your recovery its nice to hear something postivie from this horrible cancer that seems to effect us all.

Take care yourself