The EC Café - a
forum devoted to
esophageal cancer

EC Café History

The EC Café web site was launched by Cathy Byland-Weeks on December 29th, 1995.

When Cathy's father, John Byland, was diagnosed with EC in October of 1995, she discovered that there wasn't a whole lot on the Internet about this form of cancer. While that has changed somewhat since then, a clearing house is still needed.

Cathy's father is doing quite well, and since his surgery in January of 1996, he has gotten the "No Evidence of Disease" (or "NED" as it's affectionately called on the mailing list). John's wife, Jacqueline, sent us an update in October 2007 - Although he was recently diagnosed with Parkinson's, John remains cancer-free today!

The EC Café Today

Cathy handed over the Café to Tammy and Marc Wolfgram on December 29th, 1998, after 3 years of dedicated support.

The site you are viewing today is the third incarnation of Cathy's original work. It is still maintained by Marc Wolfgram.

The Café has celebrated more than 12 years of providing information on esophageal cancer!

OncoLink Editor's Choice

On June 23, 2006 the Café was awarded the 26th OncoLink Editor's Choice award for ... "the particular emphasis we at OncoLink place on patients and families who empower themselves with information about their disease. Your site is exemplary of this philosophy, and serves as a model for others."

Action Request

For US residents: At the risk of getting political for the first time on the Cafe, you don't need to be a Democrat to help change national priorities:

ACOR's EC-Group

The EC Café is designed to go hand-in-hand with the EC-Group, the esophageal cancer online mailing list.

While a web site, like this Café, is a good place for permanent sources of information, pictures and stories, the EC-Group mailing list has a much more dynamic, personal touch.

There people can discuss problems, carry on dialogues about the good and bad aspects of any treatment, and can offer individual support. However, both the Café and the EC-Group are designed to let you know that you are NOT ALONE.

More information on the EC-Group, as well as a subscription form are on the EC-Group page, linked at the top of all pages on this site.

Cathy's EC Café endorses ACOR.org...

...supporting the EC-Group since 1997!

An Invitation to Share

We are always looking for more things to add to to the Esophageal Café, so, if you have any interesting information about EC, please let us know. We can always use more articles and stories.

Content Disclaimer

We are not doctors, nor are the majority of those who contribute to this site. We seek to provide you with information about this kind of cancer. We are not advising you on how to proceed, only providing you with as much information as we can, so you can better make your own decisions.

Some of the stuff contained here isn't pretty.

The statistics, especially, can be particularly grim.

You must keep a few things in mind: Statistics are just numbers, while you are a living, breathing human being. An individual. You may or may not beat this disease, but don't let the statistics decide for you.

Best wishes,
Marc & Tammy

Please see our About page for
information about the purpose
and policies of Cathy's EC Café