Risk factors for esophageal cancer include smoking, alcohol consumption, prolonged consumption of rough food, eating too hot food, obesity, poor family financial status, and having a blood relative with cancer. Esophageal reflux disease and a condition called gastric epithelial hyperplasia of the esophageal mucosa (Barrett’s esophagus disease), as well as frequent heartburn, difficulty or pain in swallowing, and pharyngeal or back pain, are also thought to be closely related to esophageal cancer. Statistics show that middle-aged and elderly men do have a somewhat higher risk of esophageal cancer than the rest of the population. In China, the geographical factors of esophageal cancer are obvious, such as Linzhou in Henan Province, Taihang Mountain area and Hexi Corridor area, which are the high incidence areas of esophageal cancer.