The area covering the terminal portion of ESOPHAGUS and the beginning of STOMACH at the cardiac orifice.

Tumors or cancer of the ESOPHAGUS.

That part of the STOMACH close to the opening from ESOPHAGUS into the stomach (cardiac orifice), the ESOPHAGOGASTRIC JUNCTION. The cardia is so named because of its closeness to the HEART. Cardia is characterized by the lack of acid-forming cells (GASTRIC PARIETAL CELLS).

Excision of part (partial) or all (total) of the esophagus. (Dorland, 28th ed)

Measurement of the pressure or tension of liquids or gases with a manometer.

Surgical formation of an external opening (stoma) into the esophagus.

STOMACH herniation located at or near the diaphragmatic opening for the ESOPHAGUS, the esophageal hiatus.

A motility disorder of the ESOPHAGUS in which the LOWER ESOPHAGEAL SPHINCTER (near the CARDIA) fails to relax resulting in functional obstruction of the esophagus, and DYSPHAGIA. Achalasia is characterized by a grossly contorted and dilated esophagus (megaesophagus).

A malignant epithelial tumor with a glandular organization.

Tumors or cancer of the STOMACH.

The physiologic or functional barrier to GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX at the esophagogastric junction. Sphincteric muscles remain tonically contracted during the resting state and form the high-pressure zone separating the lumen of the ESOPHAGUS from that of the STOMACH. (Haubrich et al, Bockus Gastroenterology, 5th ed., pp399, 415)

A condition with damage to the lining of the lower ESOPHAGUS resulting from chronic acid reflux (ESOPHAGITIS, REFLUX). Through the process of metaplasia, the squamous cells are replaced by a columnar epithelium with cells resembling those of the INTESTINE or the salmon-pink mucosa of the STOMACH. Barrett's columnar epithelium is a marker for severe reflux and precursor to ADENOCARCINOMA of the esophagus.

The act of taking solids and liquids into the GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT through the mouth and throat.

Disorders affecting the motor function of the UPPER ESOPHAGEAL SPHINCTER; LOWER ESOPHAGEAL SPHINCTER; the ESOPHAGUS body, or a combination of these parts. The failure of the sphincters to maintain a tonic pressure may result in gastric reflux of food and acid into the esophagus (GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX). Other disorders include hypermotility (spastic disorders) and markedly increased amplitude in contraction (nutcracker esophagus).

Excision of the whole (total gastrectomy) or part (subtotal gastrectomy, partial gastrectomy, gastric resection) of the stomach. (Dorland, 28th ed)

A condition in which there is a change of one adult cell type to another similar adult cell type.

A movement, caused by sequential muscle contraction, that pushes the contents of the intestines or other tubular organs in one direction.

The muscular membranous segment between the PHARYNX and the STOMACH in the UPPER GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT.

Mobilization of the lower end of the esophagus and plication of the fundus of the stomach around it (fundic wrapping) in the treatment of GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX that may be associated with various disorders, such as hiatal hernia. (From Dorland, 28th ed)

Endoscopic examination, therapy or surgery of the gastrointestinal tract.

Connections between cells which allow passage of small molecules and electric current. Gap junctions were first described anatomically as regions of close apposition between cells with a narrow (1-2 nm) gap between cell membranes. The variety in the properties of gap junctions is reflected in the number of CONNEXINS, the family of proteins which form the junctions.

A type of stress exerted uniformly in all directions. Its measure is the force exerted per unit area. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)

Retrograde flow of gastric juice (GASTRIC ACID) and/or duodenal contents (BILE ACIDS; PANCREATIC JUICE) into the distal ESOPHAGUS, commonly due to incompetence of the LOWER ESOPHAGEAL SPHINCTER.

Direct contact of a cell with a neighboring cell. Most such junctions are too small to be resolved by light microscopy, but they can be visualized by conventional or freeze-fracture electron microscopy, both of which show that the interacting CELL MEMBRANE and often the underlying CYTOPLASM and the intervening EXTRACELLULAR SPACE are highly specialized in these regions. (From Alberts et al., Molecular Biology of the Cell, 2d ed, p792)

Cell-cell junctions that seal adjacent epithelial cells together, preventing the passage of most dissolved molecules from one side of the epithelial sheet to the other. (Alberts et al., Molecular Biology of the Cell, 2nd ed, p22)

An EPITHELIUM with MUCUS-secreting cells, such as GOBLET CELLS. It forms the lining of many body cavities, such as the DIGESTIVE TRACT, the RESPIRATORY TRACT, and the reproductive tract. Mucosa, rich in blood and lymph vessels, comprises an inner epithelium, a middle layer (lamina propria) of loose CONNECTIVE TISSUE, and an outer layer (muscularis mucosae) of SMOOTH MUSCLE CELLS that separates the mucosa from submucosa.

A stricture of the ESOPHAGUS. Most are acquired but can be congenital.

Surgical excision of one or more lymph nodes. Its most common use is in cancer surgery. (From Dorland, 28th ed, p966)

Preliminary cancer therapy (chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hormone/endocrine therapy, immunotherapy, hyperthermia, etc.) that precedes a necessary second modality of treatment.

Methods which attempt to express in replicable terms the extent of the neoplasm in the patient.

Surgical union or shunt between ducts, tubes or vessels. It may be end-to-end, end-to-side, side-to-end, or side-to-side.

Dilated blood vessels in the ESOPHAGUS or GASTRIC FUNDUS that shunt blood from the portal circulation (PORTAL SYSTEM) to the systemic venous circulation. Often they are observed in individuals with portal hypertension (HYPERTENSION, PORTAL).

The act of dilating.

An organ of digestion situated in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen between the termination of the ESOPHAGUS and the beginning of the DUODENUM.

A genus of large OPOSSUMS in the family Didelphidae, found in the Americas. The species Didelphis virginiana is prominent in North America.

Anchoring points where the CYTOSKELETON of neighboring cells are connected to each other. They are composed of specialized areas of the plasma membrane where bundles of the ACTIN CYTOSKELETON attach to the membrane through the transmembrane linkers, CADHERINS, which in turn attach through their extracellular domains to cadherins in the neighboring cell membranes. In sheets of cells, they form into adhesion belts (zonula adherens) that go all the way around a cell.

A prediction of the probable outcome of a disease based on a individual's condition and the usual course of the disease as seen in similar situations.

Transfer of a neoplasm from its primary site to lymph nodes or to distant parts of the body by way of the lymphatic system.

The synapse between a neuron and a muscle.

Abnormal passage communicating with the ESOPHAGUS. The most common type is TRACHEOESOPHAGEAL FISTULA between the esophagus and the TRACHEA.

The proportion of survivors in a group, e.g., of patients, studied and followed over a period, or the proportion of persons in a specified group alive at the beginning of a time interval who survive to the end of the interval. It is often studied using life table methods.

Pathological processes in the ESOPHAGUS.

Abnormal passage communicating with the STOMACH.

The treatment of a disease or condition by several different means simultaneously or sequentially. Chemoimmunotherapy, RADIOIMMUNOTHERAPY, chemoradiotherapy, cryochemotherapy, and SALVAGE THERAPY are seen most frequently, but their combinations with each other and surgery are also used.

Fastening devices composed of steel-tantalum alloys used to close operative wounds, especially of the skin, which minimizes infection by not introducing a foreign body that would connect external and internal regions of the body. (From Segen, Current Med Talk, 1995)

Bleeding in any segment of the GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT from ESOPHAGUS to RECTUM.

Creation of an artificial external opening into the stomach for nutritional support or gastrointestinal compression.

The upper or most anterior segment of the STERNUM which articulates with the CLAVICLE and first two pairs of RIBS.

Abnormal increase of resistance to blood flow within the hepatic PORTAL SYSTEM, frequently seen in LIVER CIRRHOSIS and conditions with obstruction of the PORTAL VEIN.

Studies in which individuals or populations are followed to assess the outcome of exposures, procedures, or effects of a characteristic, e.g., occurrence of disease.

Evaluation undertaken to assess the results or consequences of management and procedures used in combating disease in order to determine the efficacy, effectiveness, safety, and practicability of these interventions in individual cases or series.

Anastomosis of splenic vein to renal vein to relieve portal hypertension.

Difficulty in SWALLOWING which may result from neuromuscular disorder or mechanical obstruction. Dysphagia is classified into two distinct types: oropharyngeal dysphagia due to malfunction of the PHARYNX and UPPER ESOPHAGEAL SPHINCTER; and esophageal dysphagia due to malfunction of the ESOPHAGUS.