Facing A New Case Out of The Courtroom
A Tennessee lawyer shares his personal fight against cancer
- by Heather Newman | Photography by Dean Dixon
When 50-year-old Chuck Cagle learned he had stage IV esophageal cancer he had one thought – "I'm a dead man." He had a fever that wouldn't go away. Concerned, he made an appointment to see his doctor. Several tests revealed no clues, but then an MRI picked up a cyst on his pancreas.
Doctors assured Cagle it was nothing serious, but they wanted to do some more tests to get a closer look. A tube placed down Cagle's throat revealed a tumor blocking the way. It was esophageal cancer. And had it not been for the unrelated cyst on his pancreas, it might not have been found quickly enough. "I don't think my wife or I will ever get over hearing that. I had to sit down. That's the last thing I expected to hear. There is no cancer in my family. I was just in a stupor," Cagle said.
Cagle didn't have the majority of problems that typically put people at risk for esophageal cancer. He is not a regular smoker, although he admits to smoking an occasional cigar. He's not a big drinker, and he doesn't recall any problems with acid reflux. "We know it relates to acid reflux, but the connection is not 100 percent certain," said Bill Putnam, M.D., chair of Thoracic Surgery and Vanderbilt-Ingram member.
An estimated 20 million Americans experience chronic heartburn, and about 2 million of those people have Barrett's esophagus. Barrett's esophagus is a precancerous condition of the esophagus that is typically found in white men over 50. The condition, which affects the lining of the lower esophagus, is often associated with long-term acid reflux.
Barrett's esophagus is another warning sign for esophageal
cancer, but Putnam said not all people who have the condition will develop esophageal cancer, which remains a mystery. "It probably results from chronic, repetitive chemical trauma to the esophagus," Putnam said. "The treatments for acid reflux might play a role in causing the esophageal cancer."
Adenocarcinoma is the type of esophageal cancer connected to Barrett's esophagus, and it's seen in roughly 10,000 Americans a year, with numbers rising faster than any other cancer in the U.S. "We have essentially an epidemic of esophageal cancers, specifically adenocarcinoma," Putnam said.
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