Dr. Aaron Sasson

“In the United States, about 85% of all of our cancers are adenocarcinomas. So the incidence of squamous carcinomas in the esophagus is quite low, just to put it into perspective,”

Dr. Aaron Sasson · said date not stated · reported 2026-09-11

Sasson noted that squamous carcinomas of the esophagus are relatively uncommon in the United States compared to adenocarcinomas.

“If you were to limit alcohol consumption and eliminate cigarette smoking, you will have done wonders for your esophagus.”

Dr. Aaron Sasson · said date not stated · reported 2026-09-11

Sasson stated that limiting alcohol consumption and eliminating cigarette smoking would greatly benefit esophageal health.

“If you are a heavy consumer of hot tea or coffee, maybe you'd want to cool it down a little bit,”

Dr. Aaron Sasson · said date not stated · reported 2026-09-11

Sasson advised that heavy consumers of hot tea or coffee should consider cooling their drinks, but said it is not the predominant risk factor for most people.

“But I think for practical purposes, for most people, [it’s] not the predominant risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus.”

Dr. Aaron Sasson · said date not stated · reported 2026-09-11

Sasson said that while hot beverages pose some risk, they are not the predominant risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus for most people.

“Similar to burning your hand – if you were to get a burn on your hand, you have an increased risk of getting squamous cell carcinoma of the hand, of the skin developing in the burned area,”

Dr. Aaron Sasson · said date not stated · reported 2026-09-11

Sasson explained the mechanism by which hot beverages may increase cancer risk, comparing thermal injury to the esophagus with a burn on the hand.

“So think of that as constantly repeating a burn to the esophagus.”

Dr. Aaron Sasson · said date not stated · reported 2026-09-11

Sasson described the risk of hot beverages as analogous to repeatedly burning the esophagus.