TIFTON — Dr. George Yared at Tift Regional Medical Center is committed to increasing awareness about the links between chronic heartburn and adenocarcinoma, the most common type of esophageal cancer in the United States, hospital officials said in a statement.

Chronic heartburn or acid reflux, also known as GERD, results when the gastroesophageal valve allows stomach contents to reflux (wash backwards) into the esophagus, causing injury to the esophageal lining, they added.

GERD is the most common gastrointestinal-related diagnosis made by physicians during clinical visits in the U.S. and is a primary risk factor associated with esophageal cancer.

“GERD impacts one in five adults and can be complex to fully diagnose and treat,” Yared said. “We are addressing this disease in the community by using the most advanced treatment options available to comprehensively manage our patients.

“GERD is an anatomical problem which needs an anatomical solution. Reflux medication like PPIs — proton pump inhibitors — can help relieve patients’ heartburn symptoms but don’t solve the underlying anatomical problems or prevent further disease progression.”

The TIF procedure is a solution for the anatomical problem.

“Whenever possible, we aim to fix the root cause of GERD to prevent further esophageal damage. The TIF procedure allows me to repair the faulty valve and prevents stomach contents from refluxing back into the esophagus. This option can significantly improve quality of life for our patients,” Yared said. “After the TIF procedure, clinical studies show that most patients are no longer dependent on medications and can eat and drink foods they avoided for many years. Reflux no longer impacts their lives like it previously did.”

April was Esophageal Cancer Month.

To learn more about Esophageal Cancer and its links to GERD, visit resource sites like www.ecan.org, www.americancancersociety.org and www.ecaware.org. To learn more about receiving the TIF procedure from Yared, visit mysouthwell.com/gastroenterology/.