Obstructive sensation or dull pain behind the sternum when swallowing dry food is one of the early and middle stage manifestations of esophageal cancer. It is mainly progressive dysphagia. In early stage, there may be only discomfort or blockage feeling when swallowing, pain behind the sternum or discomfort behind the sternum when swallowing food. The early diagnosis of esophageal cancer is not easy to show. Experienced radiologists fully adjust the barium and make the patient swallow it in small bites in several times, and carefully observe in multiple directions and double air-barium imaging, most of them can find the signs of earlier cancer such as thickening, tortuous or dashed interruption of esophageal mucosa; or hairy esophageal edge; or small filling defect; or small niche shadow; or limited stiffness of canal wall; or barium retention. If there are symptoms of obstruction or dull pain behind the sternum when swallowing dry food, we should be alert to the following self-diagnosis methods of esophageal cancer: 1. Benign esophageal tumors are mainly rare smooth muscle tumors. The disease duration is longer. Barium X-ray examination can show that the esophagus has round shape. Oval or lobulated filling defect. The edges are neat. The surrounding mucosal pattern is normal. 2. Hysterical globus is mostly seen in young women. Sometimes there is a ball-like foreign body sensation in the pharynx. It disappears when eating. It is often triggered by psychological factors. There is no organic esophageal lesion in this disease. It is not difficult to distinguish it from esophageal cancer. 3. Patients with esophageal cardia failure are mostly young women. The duration of the disease is long. The symptoms are sometimes mild and sometimes severe. Barium esophageal examination shows a smooth funnel-shaped stenosis at the lower end of the esophagus. It can be dilated with the application of antispasmodics. 4. Benign esophageal strictures can be caused by accidental swallowing of corrosive agents. Esophageal burns. Foreign body injury. Scarring caused by chronic ulcers, etc. The duration of the disease is long. Difficulty in swallowing develops to a certain degree that no longer aggravates. It can be identified by detailed history and barium x-ray.