A preliminary investigation of blood cell counts for esophageal cancer screening: differentiating esophageal cancer from gastroesophageal reflux disease

Abstract Esophageal Cancer (EC) ranks as the eleventh most prevalent malignancy globally and the seventh leading cause of cancer-related mortality. There is growing evidence to suggest that blood routine parameters have diagnostic and prognostic value in oncology. This study was designed to analyze whether there are any significant differences in complete blood count (CBC) parameters between patients with EC, patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and healthy controls (HC). We retrospectively analyzed selected blood parameters from 209 HC, 209 patients diagnosed with EC, and 198 patients suffering from GERD. We found significant differences in platelet count (PLT), mean platelet volume (MPV), plateletcrit (PCT), platelet distribution width (PDW), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) among the EC, GERD, and HC groups. Of note, PDW and LMR exhibited significant differences specifically between the EC and GERD groups. In conclusion, the LMR holds diagnostic significance and can differentiate patients with EC from those with GERD. The integration of hematological parameters and clinical manifestations serves as a guiding principle for both medical practitioners and patients in determining the necessity for upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, thereby potentially enhancing the early detection rate of EC.