Artificial intelligence technique in detection of early esophageal cancer

Esophageal cancer (EC) is the eighth most common cancer and the sixth leading cause of cancer death worldwide[1]. EC mainly consists of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). EAC is the most common pathological type in Western countries, more than 40% of patients with EAC are diagnosed after the disease has metastasized, and the 5-year survival rate is less than 20%[2,3]. Although the incidence of EAC has been increasing globally, ESCC remains the most common pathological type (80%) of all ECs with the highest incidence across a'cancer belt' extending from East Africa and across the Middle East to Asia. Only 20% of patients with ESCC survive longer than 3 years, primarily due to late-stage diagnosis[4].