Letter to the Editor
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Oncol. Jun 15, 2025; 17(6): 103333
Published online Jun 15, 2025. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v17.i6.103333
Unravelling the potential of plasma DNA methylation in the detection and surveillance of esophageal cancer
Jitesh Arora, Mahmoud Nassar, Bahaaeldin Baraka
Jitesh Arora, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham NG7 2UH, United Kingdom
Mahmoud Nassar, Department of Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, New York, NY 14203, United States
Bahaaeldin Baraka, Department of Oncology, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham NG5 1PB, United Kingdom
Author contributions: Arora J contributed to scientific writing, conducted the literature review, and revised the references; Baraka B led the project, drafted the manuscript, conducted literature review, and managed the submission process; Nassar M conceptualized the study, coordinated with team members, contributed to the literature review, and facilitated data collection. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Bahaaeldin Baraka, Department of Oncology, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Hucknall Rd, Nottingham NG5 1PB, United Kingdom. bahaabaraka@gmail.com
Received: November 18, 2024
Revised: February 9, 2025
Accepted: February 19, 2025
Published online: June 15, 2025
Processing time: 209 Days and 19.1 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: Esophageal cancer (EC) lacks a reliable early detection method, leading to high rates of late-stage diagnosis and poor prognosis. This study explores the use of plasma DNA methylation markers-SHOX2, SEPTIN9, EPO, and RNF180-as a non-invasive tool for early EC screening and surveillance. Demonstrating high sensitivity and specificity, this methylation panel holds promise for improving diagnostic accuracy and patient monitoring. Despite some limitations, this innovative approach could significantly impact clinical practices, offering a transformative solution to enhance early detection, reduce mortality, and improve quality of life for EC patients.