Anyone recovered from heartburn?

[MariaJones]

I have been suffering from longstanding heartburn and not sure whether I have got esophageal cancer.

Thinking currently to undergo treatment by Dr Matthew Banks in London ( drmatthewbanks.co.uk ), as suggested by one of my friends.

Is there anyone who have recovered from this disease?

[SteveJ]

Hi Maria

Yes there are lots of people who have recovered from this disease as you will see if you look over this site. I am 8 years post and there are lots of people who have more years under there belt's than that. long term heartburn really needs checking out.

Kind Regards

Steve

[JessMadge]

Well yes people can recover from heartburn and I am one of them. There are lots of things you can do - for instance if you have fat around your waist, get rid of it, because it squashes the stomach and pushes acid backwards.

But you also sound as if you are suffering from cancer anxiety. The vast majority of people with heartburn don't have cancer - although if it goes on for years you increase your risk of cancer.

Even if you have private medical cover the usual first step is to see your GP who might refer you to a specialist to do an endoscopic examination to check the lining of your oesophagus. If you can express your preferences about which NHS hospital you are referred to and/or explain that you have private health insurance at that time.

The GP might also suggest that you take a course of acid-blocking drugs to see if they settle things down.

[Hidden]

The website actionagainstheartburn.org.uk explains about the relationship between persistent heartburn, Barrett's oesophagus and adenocarcinoma. You are doing the right thing by getting checked out. An endoscopy (miniature camera down your throat, often with a sedative) will indicate visually whether your persistent heartburn has graduated to Barrett's oesophagus or not. Barrett's is columns of different coloured cells caused by the effect of stomach acid coming up into the oesophagus. The lining of the oesophagus is not designed to withstand the acid and this creates the pain of heartburn. Many people die with Barrett's rather than from the risks of Barrett's. It all depends on whether there is dysplasia or not. Low grade dysplasia carries a risk of cancer of about 5% in 1-8 years; high grade dysplasia about 50% in 1-8 years. But statistics become rather meaningless when you are looking at your own personal situation. If you have not got dysplasia, the risk of cancer is low, something like 0.3% per patient year (a patient with newly developed Barrett's at age 30 years may have 11-25% chance of developing oesophageal adenocarcinoma before the age of 80).

If you do have Barrett's it may be that it can be treated by radio frequency ablation - a process that removes the top layer of affected cells so that they grow back normally. The results of this are quite good, and effectively hold out the possibility of largely preventing the future cancer risk. So definitely worth doing if your examination reveals that this is an option. You might be put on to a regular surveillance programme which can be endoscopy at intervals ranging from 6 months to 5 years, depending on findings. For those who do develop cancer when they are on this sort of programme, and who are then treated, the 5 year survival rate is something like 90%, dramatically higher than the average 15% for oesophageal cancer overall.

If you do have a small shallow early stage cancerous tumour, that can sometimes be removed by endoscopic mucosal resection, ie without a big operation. If you have cancer it might involve surgery to remove your oesophagus and/or part / all of your stomach, which is a big operation and sounds really scary. But many people using this site have had this surgery. It takes a lot of getting over, but a reasonably good quality of life is perfectly possible afterwards. David Kirby, who founded the OPA, had oesophageal cancer and his oesophagus removed in about 1983 and is still alive and well.

Persistent heartburn is not normal, so it is right to get a proper diagnosis for underlying causes, which will often be something other than cancer. But you are bound to worry about it until you have had the examination result. You would not be normal if you didn't.

[nfa987]

Hi,

Dr Banks is an extraordinary physician, and a pleasant and generous person.He really listens to the patient. I do not think you could do better than get a referral to Dr Banks. He is truly at the "cutting edge" with his research and team, but seemed to me to be first and foremost a patient centred clinician.

That said, persistent heartburn is very difficult to resolve completely, and it seems to be often finding ways to manage the condition, or hopefully gain some improvement.

Of course, the important thing initially is to have a thorough assessment of all the factors that might be causing your problems. Clarifying those factors is often helpful in itself and helps lessen the inevitable anxieties about this condition. One can then be more "relaxed" and less worried, which may in turn reduce some of the symptom levels.

Best wishes with whatever you go on to do.

[drsteve]

HI Maria, The replies are fantastic. I agree that a complete exam is proper to rule out any mucosal damage and to attempt to discern the cause of the heartburn. A paper on the Action Against Heartburn site (healthunlocked.com/oesophag... states that endoscopy with classification is recommended before long term PPI use is initiated. On the other hand, the "cause" of heartburn is not adequately discussed. Only a malfunctioning sphincter is listed as a cause. There are many reasons for heartburn and in my opinion, these are addressed best in the world of functional medicine. I have had an esophagectomy (2010) for Achalasia and do not use PPIs. I have investigated this topic and continue to do so and have found many wonderful solutions including stress reduction techniques and mostly nutrition: food and supplements. Please see the book I wrote called Living with Achalasia. It is a free download: livingwithachalasia.org/

Best,

Dr. Steve

[MariaJones]

Thank you all for you suggestions. I am feeling better now. Got relieved from so much worries.

Also good to know about Dr. Matthew Banks being a good gastroenterologist.