Association between continuous cessation or reduction of drinking alcohol and improvement of multiple dysplastic lesions in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma after endoscopic resection

• Published in: Esophagus : official journal of the Japan Esophageal Society Vol. 21; no. 1; pp. 31 - 40
• Main Authors: Hori, Keisuke, Katada, Chikatoshi, Okada, Hiroyuki, Katagiri, Atsushi, Matsuo, Yasumasa, Yokoyama, Tetsuji, Yano, Tomonori, Suzuki, Haruhisa, Shimizu, Yuichi, Furue, Yasuaki, Nakanishi, Hiroyoshi, Koike, Tomoyuki, Takizawa, Kohei, Hirao, Motohiro, Yoshii, Takako, Yamanouchi, Takenori, Kawakubo, Hirofumi, Kobayashi, Nozomu, Shimoda, Tadakazu, Ochiai, Atsushi, Ishikawa, Hideki, Yokoyama, Akira, Muto, Manabu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Singapore Springer Nature Singapore 2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Alcohol use; Cancer surgery; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - pathology; Clinical outcomes; Cohort Studies; Esophageal cancer; Esophageal Neoplasms - pathology; Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma; Esophagoscopy; Gastroenterology; Head and Neck Neoplasms; Humans; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Original Article; Risk Factors; Smoking cessation; Squamous cell carcinoma; Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck; Surgical Oncology; Thoracic Surgery; Esophageal cancer; Field cancerization; Lugol-voiding lesions
• ISSN: 1612-9059; 1612-9067
• DOI: 10.1007/s10388-023-01033-9

Background Multiple development of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in the upper aerodigestive tract has been explained by the ‘field cancerization phenomenon’ associated with alcohol drinking. Squamous dysplastic lesion is clinically visualised as a Lugol-voiding lesion (LVL) by chromoendoscopy. Whether cessation or reduction of alcohol drinking improves multiple LVL and reduces the risk of field cancerization has not been elucidated. Methods We analysed 330 patients with newly diagnosed superficial esophageal SCC (ESCC) enrolled in the cohort study. The grade of LVL was assessed in all patients every 6 months. We instructed the patients to stop smoking and drinking and recorded their drinking and smoking status every 6 months. Results Among 330 patients, we excluded 98 with no LVL or no drinking habit. Of the remaining 232 patients, 158 continuously ceased or reduced their drinking habit. Patients who ceased or reduced their drinking habit significantly showed improvement in the grade of LVL. Multivariate analysis showed that continuous cessation or reduction of drinking habit improved the grade of LVL (hazard ratio [HR] = 8.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.7–153.8, p = 0.0053). Higher grade of LVL carried a high risk of multiple ESCC and head and neck SCC (HNSCC) (HR = 3.7, 95% CI 2.2–6.4, p < 0.0001). Improvement in LVL significantly decreased the risk of multiple ESCC and HNSCC (HR = 0.2, 95% CI 0.04–0.7, p = 0.009). Conclusions This is the first report indicating that field cancerization was reversible and cessation or reduction of drinking alcohol could prevent multiple squamous dysplastic lesion and multiple ESCC and HNSCC development. Clinical trials registry number UMIN000001676.