Oesophageal cancer is among the world's ten most common malignancies. Worldwide each year there are approximately 500 000 new cases. More than 80% of those oesophageal tumours are squamous cell carcinomas, a cancer that has a predilection for black and Asian populations. Areas with exceptionally high incidence rates for oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma include parts of Africa, and a so-called 'oesophageal cancer belt' that extends from the shores of the Caspian Sea across northern China. Within that belt are local regions where the incidence of oesophageal squamous cell cancer exceeds 100 cases per 100000. Oesophageal adenocarcinoma, the other important histological type of oesophageal cancer, is a tumour that involves white populations predominantly, with highest incidence rates found in western countries such as the United States, western Europe and Australia. Even in those western countries, however, the annual incidence of oesophageal adenocarcinoma is only two to eight cases per 100000.
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