Risk factors for Barrett's esophagus : a scoping review

IntroductionCancer of the esophagus is a highly lethal disease with many patients presenting with metastatic spread of their tumor at diagnosis; a consequence of this late presentation is the 5-year survival rate of \20 %. Barrett’s esophagus (BE), a premalignant condition of the distal esophagus, is the main risk factor for adenocarcinoma of the esophagus. The development of a risk prediction tool that could assist healthcare professionals in identifying people at increased risk of developing BE would be advantageous. Understanding the factors that influence the risk of developing BE is the first stage of developing a risk prediction tool. MethodsA scoping review was undertaken to address the following question ‘what factors influence the risk of developing Barrett’s esophagus?’ Forty-six articles were included in this review. ResultsThe majority of articles reviewed were case– control or cohort studies. Samples sizes ranged from 68 to 84,606. Risk factors reported to be statistically significant were divided into three categories: demographic, lifestyle and clinical factors. Strongest risk factors identified include: male gender, increasing age, white race, smoking, obesity and gastro-esophageal reflux disease symptoms, while some aspects of a person’s diet appear to act as a protective measure. ConclusionRisk factors for BE are complex and need to be considered by healthcare professionals when identifying patients that could benefit from endoscopic eradication. These results provide a stepping stone for the future development of a risk prediction model

MicroRNA Expression Differentiates Squamous Epithelium from Barrett’s Esophagus and Esophageal Cancer

BACKGROUND: Current strategies fail to identify most patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) before the disease becomes advanced and incurable. Given the dismal prognosis associated with EAC, improvements in detection of early-stage esophageal neoplasia are needed. AIMS: We sought to assess whether differential expression of microRNAs could discriminate between squamous epithelium, Barrett’s esophagus (BE), and EAC. METHODS: We analyzed microRNA expression in a discovery cohort of human endoscopic biopsy samples from 36 patients representing normal squamous esophagus (n=11), BE (n=14), and high-grade dysplasia (HGD)/EAC (n=11). RNA was assessed using microarrays representing 847 human microRNAs followed by qRT-PCR verification of nine microRNAs. In a second cohort (n=18), qRT-PCR validation of five miRNAs was performed. Expression of 59 microRNAs associated with BE/EAC in the literature was assessed in our training cohort. Known esophageal cell lines were used to compare miRNA expression to tissue miRNAs. RESULTS: After controlling for multiple comparisons, we found 34 miRNAs differentially expressed between squamous esophagus and BE/EAC by microarray analysis. However, miRNA expression did not reliably differentiate non-dysplastic BE from EAC. In the validation cohort, all five microRNAs selected for qRT-PCR validation differentiated between squamous samples and BE/EAC. Microarray results supported 14 of the previously reported microRNAs associated with BE/EAC in the literature. Cell lines did not generally reflect miRNA expression found in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that miRNAs differ between squamous esophageal epithelium and BE/EAC, but do not distinguish between BE and EAC. We suggest prospective evaluation of miRNAs in patients at high risk for EAC

Screening for Barrett’s Oesophagus: Are We Ready for it?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The targeted approach adopted for Barrett's oesophagus (BO) screening is sub-optimal considering the large proportion of BO cases that are currently missed. We reviewed the literature highlighting recent technological advancements in efforts to counteract this challenge. We also provided insights into strategies that can improve the outcomes from current BO screening practises. RECENT FINDINGS: The standard method for BO detection, endoscopy, is invasive and expensive and therefore inappropriate for mass screening. On the other hand, endoscopy is more cost-effective for screening a high-risk population. A consensus has however not been reached on who should be screened. Risk prediction algorithms have been tested as an enrichment pre-screening tool reporting modest AUC's but require more prospective evaluation studies. Less invasive endoscopy methods like trans-nasal endoscopy, oesophageal capsule endsocopy and non-endoscopic cell collection devices like the Cytosponge coupled with biomarker analysis have shown promise in BO detection with randomised clinical trial evidence. SUMMARY: A three-tier precision cancer programme whereby risk prediction algorithms and non-endoscopic minimally invasive cell collection devices are used to triage test a wider pool of individuals may improve the detection rate of current screening practises with minimal cost implications