We read with interest the recent letter from Drs Lenglinger and Riegeler published in Surgical Endoscopy [1]. This was in response to a study by Ciovica et al. [2] on the use of antisecretory medication after antireflux surgery. The letter commented that the findings of the study "are of major oncological impact." This comment was based on the statement that proven abolition of reflux in patients with Barrett's esophagus (BE) will "eliminate the risk for progression to dysplasia and cancer". It is this statement that raises concern. There is no current evidence that this is indeed the case, and certainly there is no study with a follow-up period sufficiently long actually to confirm or refute the hypothesis [3].
展开▼
