I have Barretts esophagus and several of my family members have heartburn. Can Barretts esophagus run in families?
There are families in which more than one member has Barrett’s esophagus, or esophageal adenocarcinoma, but since most people who have Barrett’s esophagus go undiagnosed, there may be many more families that we don’t know about. One study has shown that more family members of people who have Barrett’s esophagus have heartburn as compared to family members of people who do not have Barrett’s esophagus. Certainly anyone who has a problem with heartburn and has a family member with Barrett’s esophagus or esophageal adenocarcinoma needs to have their esophagus checked for Barrett’s esophagus by upper endoscopy with biopsy.
