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Introduction
The diagnosis of cancer of the esophagus* brings with it many questions and a need for clear, understandable answers. We hope this National Cancer Institute (NCI) booklet (NIH Publication No. 00-1557) will help. It provides information about the symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer of the esophagus, and it describes some of the possible causes (risk factors) of this disease. Having this important information may make it easier for patients and their families to handle the challenges they face.
Cancer researchers continue to study and learn more about cancer of the esophagus. The Cancer Information Service 1 (CIS), a free public service of the NCI, can provide the latest, most accurate information on cancer of the esophagus. The CIS meets the information needs of patients, the public, and health professionals. Specially trained staff provide the latest scientific information about cancer in understandable language. They can also provide information about locating community cancer programs and services. CIS staff answer questions in English and Spanish and distribute NCI materials, such as the publications mentioned in this booklet. The toll-free phone number is 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237). For deaf and hard of hearing callers with TTY equipment, the number is 1-800-332-8615.
Many NCI publications are also available on the Internet at the Web sites listed in the
"National Cancer Institute Information Resources 2" section at the end of this booklet.
*Throughout this booklet, words that may be new to readers appear in
italics. Definitions of these and other terms related to cancer of the
esophagus
can be found in the Dictionary 3. For some words, a
"sounds-like" spelling is also given. |
