Dear Editor,
Esophageal cancer is a serious malignancy with high rates of incidence and mortality. It ranked the eighth most common cancer and the sixth leading cause of cancer death worldwide.1 About 87% of esophageal cancers are esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs), with the highest incidence found in South-Eastern and Central Asia.2 Notably, almost half of the global esophageal cancers occur in China.3 The 5-year survival rate of esophageal cancer patients is only 15 to 20%, partly due to late clinical presentation and lack of early diagnostic biomarkers.4 Therefore, exploring a highly sensitive and specific early diagnosis method is in urgent need.