Gene test flags up risk of oesophageal cancer

DEADLY cancer of the oesophagus could be spotted eight years earlier with a new gene test, giving hope that thousands of deaths could be prevented each year.

The disease is often only diagnosed at a late stage, after it has spread, and nearly 90pc of sufferers die within 10 years.

However, scientists at Cambridge University have discovered that important genetic changes occur in people who go on to develop the cancer – and these can be spotted up to eight years early.

Prof Rebecca Fitzgerald, the lead researcher based at the University of Cambridge MRC Cancer Unit, said: “Many people with oesophageal cancer are diagnosed when their disease has already spread and is harder to treat.

“Testing for these new markers during regular checks could help identify people who have a high chance of developing such cancer.”

Scientists studied the oesophageal tissue from 90 patients suffering from Barrett’s oesophagus, a common condition in which cells lining the food pipe change shape.

Around one in 10 people who suffer from acid reflux will develop Barrett’s oesophagus and around 5pc of those will develop oesophageal cancer.

The Cambridge team found predictive genetic markers in 94pc of the people who went on to develop gullet cancer and the markers were present up to eight years before symptoms appeared.

Currently, people with Barrett’s oesophagus are given endoscopies every few years.

But the new test could mean that people with high-risk genetic markers can be closely monitored for early signs that such a cancer will develop.