The main cause of late-stage death in patients with esophageal cancer

Esophageal cancer is a malignant tumor of the digestive system with a very high incidence rate. The mortality rate of patients in the late stage is also on the rise. There are many causes of death, the most common ones are the following.

Ignoring early symptoms

There are no obvious symptoms in the early stage of esophageal cancer, and most patients do not take it seriously or mistake it for other minor illnesses, and just take medicine to deal with it. Therefore, when obvious physical abnormalities appear, the diagnosis is already in the middle and late stages. At this time, the cancer cells may have spread or metastasized in different situations, which is difficult to treat, and various therapies may not guarantee a long survival time for the patient. Lack of understanding and care about the early symptoms of esophageal cancer is also an important reason why esophageal cancer cannot be detected early.

Esophageal cancer metastasis and spread

Many patients die due to distant metastasis of cancer cells. Esophageal cancer metastasizes extensively throughout the body and causes corresponding symptoms and signs such as jaundice, ascites, abnormal liver function, dyspnea, cough, headache, coma, etc. Esophageal cancer spreads to the outer membrane of the esophagus and causes esophageal perforation, esophageal-tracheal fistula, esophageal-mediastinal fistula, etc. Esophageal cancer obstructs the esophagus and causes complete obstruction, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, cachexia, systemic failure, etc.

Wrong treatment method

Incorrect treatment is also a common cause of death in esophageal cancer patients. Some patients or their families even believe in quackery or believe that certain health products can eliminate cancer, causing patients to lose the best treatment opportunity. Late-stage esophageal cancer is generally not suitable for surgical treatment, because surgical treatment at this stage will further reduce the body's immunity and accelerate metastasis. When clinical statistics on the cause of death from esophageal cancer are compiled, there are many people who die after esophageal cancer surgery. If patients undergo radiotherapy and chemotherapy, the patient's vital signs must be more strictly monitored, and it is easy to damage normal tissues and white blood cells, causing varying degrees of damage to bone marrow function, liver and kidney function, and may also cause complications.