There's no protocol on screening for EC

How often should a family member be screened for EC? Through our journey, we have learned that my husband's uncle died of EC, my husband had EC surgery and is now NED. There are multiple cancers in his family. We encouraged our adult children to get scans. The scan for one child showed he had a ring caused by acid reflux and was put on Nexium. I have encouraged him to get one annually.

The other son, while he was told his scan showed no identifiable problems, he does experience indigestion and occasional difficulty swallowing due to allergic phlegm. It had been a year since his scan and for his physical, he asked about being re-scanned or how often. The doctor told him, "There's no protocol for screening for EC." You've had a clear scan, and you can get another one sometime in the future if you wish but regular scanning is not in protocol for risk of EC.

I've read of several posts on here where patients with heartburn are put on PPI's for long term without being scoped nor monitored until it was too late or they were put on heart meds until it was too late. Is the research data on EC so limited that insurance companies cannot justify the expense for preventive scanning. Is there enough information out there for a protocol to be developed.

I guess I'm just complaining; however, I feel time is of the essence when dealing with EC and there ought to be updated guidelines for scanning for the cause of the recurring heartburn.