The old saying an aspirin a day keeps the doctor away seems to apply for certain cancers now. Researchers reported that aspirin and other NSAIDs decrease the risk of progression of the most aggressive form of Barrett's esophagus to esophageal cancer. In a study NSAID users took the drug at least once a week for six or more months any time during follow-up, regardless of daily frequency, duration, or type, the researchers reported. Galipeau and colleagues also found that those with three or more of the biomarkers who used aspirin or other NSAIDs had a 30% risk of esophageal cancer after 10 years, while those with the same biomarkers who did not use NSAIDs had a 79% risk of developing cancer within a decade.

The vast majority of patients in this cohort had gastroesophageal reflux disease and were undergoing therapy, mainly with proton-pump inhibitors. It is unclear how the frequency or severity of symptoms may have affected NSAID use by participants, the researchers said. However, to their knowledge, they said, symptoms from reflux are not associated with intermediate endpoints or cancer in Barrett's esophagus, so it is unlikely that symptoms could explain the association of NSAID use with reduced risk of esophageal cancer. The findings may help identify patients who may benefit most from a very cost-effective, noninvasive therapy in the form of aspirin or NSAIDS.

I didn't know what was coming when I plopped myself down in the waiting room of an Ear, Nose, and Throat clinic yesterday -- which is a good thing. Had I known what doctors would do to me, I may have run the other way. I may have learned to live with the pain I was experiencing each time I swallowed food. But I waited patiently, aware that doctors would "scope" my esophagus, mildly certain the procedure could be uncomfortable, completely unprepared for the full "scope" experience.

I swallowed a pill on Friday night -- not even a whole pill, just a half of one pill -- and it hurt when it went down my throat. I've had the feeling before, a sensation like the pill got stuck, but the discomfort has always gone away within a few hours. This time, it lasted. It hurt to swallow saliva. It hurt to swallow food. It just hurt. So after three days, I took myself to the clinic -- with the subtle worry that cancer was settling in my esophagus.

I know rationally that every ache and pain I experience is not cancer. But I've had cancer. And so I constantly battle a nagging fear lodged deep in my head that reminds me cancer is always a possibility, that cancer is often a shocking outcome of a routine little test for a simple little health concern.

I do not have cancer. I do not have cancer of the throat, voice box, esophagus, or stomach. That's the good news. The scope revealed -- via a tiny camera that traveled through my body -- nothing but healthy tissue. That makes me happy. The test did not make me happy.

I now know the scope is a long, thin tube that enters the body through one nostril. Ouch. It travels into the throat. Ouch. The patient swallows when it reaches the throat to assist in maneuvering it down further. Ouch. The scope then makes its way past the voice box, though the esophagus, and into the stomach. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. The travels are all displayed on a monitor, and I actually got a glimpse of these body parts -- during the split second when I was able to control my gagging, loosen my grip on the arms of the exam chair, and open my clinched eyes. So I saw for myself that everything looks healthy -- just before the tube was pulled right back through all these parts, leaving me with a very sore throat.

Now that I am home and have talked with a few people, I hear that some patients are unconscious for this procedure. They are completely unaware of the horrors of the scope. I got a few sprays to numb my nose and throat and drank a thick cocktail of lidocaine -- but I did not get the luxury of unconsciousness. And in the end that is okay. I got to see what was happening. I got to hear the doctor's revelation that nothing major is wrong. I got to witness the wonder of medical technology. I got to prove to myself that I can handle a little discomfort in exchange for a clean bill of health. And I got to learn that I have a bit of acid reflux. And now I have to squash that nagging fear that reminds me of the literature out there suggesting a link between acid reflux and cancer.

Studies exist that link acid-reflux conditions to cancer of the larynx -- or voice box -- but authors of a new study say they all suffer shortcomings in methodology.

The new study, published in the American Journal of Medicine, was intended to make up for these shortcomings by comparing 96 men and women with laryngeal cancer to a group of adults without the disease. All participants were matched by age, gender, and ethnicity -- three of the most important risk factors for this cancer. Overall, the study found people with GERD -- gastroesophageal reflux disease -- were twice as likely to develop laryngeal cancer, compared to those without the condition. GERD has long been considered a possible risk factor for this cancer, mostly because GERD is common among people with the cancer. More definitive studies are on the horizon.

GERD, which occurs when the muscle of the bottom of the esophagus fails to close properly, allowing stomach acids to leak into the esophagus, is also linked to esophageal cancer.

Heartburn has never really been considered a major health concern. It has been considered uncomfortable and annoying and troublesome -- yet still only a harmless nuisance. In recent studies, though -- summed up in the September 2006 Oprah magazine -- heartburn has been linked to a deadly form of esophageal cancer. Apparently, people who experience heartburn one time per week or more have a fivefold or greater risk of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus -- a cancer with incidences jumping as much as 500 percent over the past 40 years. Experts insist, however, that adenocarcinoma is still rare. One doctor states that 40 percent of Americans have heartburn once per month -- yet only 8,000 to 9,000 people develop this specific cancer each year.

For the unfortunate few who do go on to contract cancer, there is hope in a surgical procedure to remove the cancer and part or all of the esophagus and nearby lymph nodes -- which can dramatically increase the odds for survival. For most of us, a bit of heartburn does not signal an eventual cancer diagnosis. It just means we might need to self-treat the symptoms with over-the-counter remedies. And a recent review at Stanford suggests that sleeping with your head elevated can reduce reflux pain.

You should see a doctor if your heartburn results in a consistent burning sensation, difficulty swallowing, or vomiting.