Adenocarcinoma of the gastro-esophagus junction associated to endobrachyesophagus. Two case reports. Review of the literature

Barrett esophagus (BE) is intestinal metaplasia (MI) within the distal tubular esophagus. The BE results in replacement of the normal squamous-lined epithelium with a columnar type epithelium. This metaplastic lesion is a clearly defined risk factor for the development of esophageal adenocarcinoma (ADC). In the western countries the incidence of adenocarcinoma of the lower esophagus and the gastro-esophagus junction have rapidly increased during the past twenty years. The 5-year survival is very poor. Although the relative risk of individuals in the United States with BE developing esophageal adenocarcinoma is very high, the absolute risk is extremely low due to the small number of cases. This lesion is caused by a persistent gastro-esophageal reflux. The nature of the reflux liquid is mixed acid and alkaline in the big majority of cases. A familial aggregation of BE and esophageal adenocarcinoma are present in 14% of patients with BE and esophageal adenocarcinoma. The diagnosis, the surveillance, the new tools of characterization of BE and the therapy remain an actual problem. We present 2 cases of endobrachyesophagus associated to an adenocarcinoma of the lower esophagus and a review of the main actual problem.