Oesophageal cancer may not cause symptoms in the early stages. Common symptoms are listed below. These symptoms can also be caused by many other conditions and do not necessarily mean that you have cancer. Speak with your general practitioner (GP) if you are concerned.
Oesophageal cancer symptoms
- difficulty swallowing
- new heartburn or reflux
- reflux that doesn’t go away
- food or fluids “catching” in the throat, or episodes of bringing food back up (regurgitation), or vomiting when swallowing
- pain when swallowing
- unexplained weight loss or loss of appetite
- feeling uncomfortable in the upper abdomen, especially when eating
- unexplained tiredness that won’t go away
- vomit that has blood in it
- black or bloody stools (poo)
→ READ MORE: Oesophageal cancer diagnosis
Key resource
Download a PDF booklet on this topic.
More resources
Prof David I Watson, Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor of Surgery, Flinders University, and Senior Consultant Surgeon, Oesophago-Gastric Surgery Unit, Flinders Medical Centre, SA; Prof Bryan Burmeister, Senior Radiation Oncologist, GenesisCare Fraser Coast and Hervey Bay Hospital, QLD; Kieran Cahill, Consumer; Jessica Jong, Clinical Dietitian, Upper GI and Hepatobiliary Services, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; John Leung, Consumer; Prof Rajvinder Singh, Professor of Medicine, University of Adelaide, and Director, Gastroenterology Department and Head of Endoscopy, Lyell McEwin Hospital, SA; Dr Sarah Sutherland, Medical Oncologist, Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, NSW; Paula Swannock, Upper GI Cancer Nurse Consultant, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, VIC; Rebecca Yeoh, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council Queensland.
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