Image caption Abdominal weight is a risk factor for oesophageal cancer

Cancers of the food pipe in Britain have doubled in men over 25 years, figures from Cancer Research UK show.

However, over the same period - 1983 to 2007 - cases in women only rose by 8%.

Researchers said the gender contrast in oesophageal cancer rates could be largely explained by the way men put weight on - as "beer bellies" - as well as genetic differences.

Men are also likely to have poorer diets, eating more fatty foods and lower amounts of fruit and vegetables.

Being overweight significantly increases the risk Professor Janusz Jankowski, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry

Oesophageal cancer is the ninth most common cancer in the UK.

It is one of the most difficult cancers to detect and treat, with only 8% surviving for five years or more. The risk of developing the disease increases with age.

In 1983, about 2,600 men were diagnosed with oesophageal cancer (9.6 in every 100,000 men).

Latest figures show 5,100 men (14.4 in every 100,000) were diagnosed with the disease in 2007.

The number of cases in women rose from 5.1 to 5.5 per 100,000 people.

The most dramatic rise was among men in their 50s, where the rates rose by 67% over the period.

Poor survival

Professor Janusz Jankowski, an oesophageal cancer expert at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, whose work is backed by Cancer Research UK, said: "One basic issue is that men's diets are worse than women's.

Case study Larry Rees, who was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer four years ago, talks about his experience. "I was sensing that as I swallowed things were getting stuck in my food tube, and that went on for a couple of weeks. I thought this isn't right, I had better go on and talk to a doctor. Your life changes the moment someone says 'I'm sorry you have got a tumour', but you very quickly have to adapt to what is going to come next. Treatment wise, first of all they sort out lots of tests so that they can actually find out how far along you are in terms of the tumour. And then chemotherapy to try and reduce the tumour, followed by a very aggressive surgery which takes out most of your oesophagus and most of your stomach, and lots of lymph nodes, and things like that. Eating and drinking is very different, I can't sit down and have a three course meal, which is normally what we do when we go out and socialise. I have to sit there and have maybe one course, and eat it very slowly. I'm four years out and doing very well, there has been no signs of any recurrence for me, so I consider myself cured. Five years is the magic number that everybody looks at, so hopefully within a few months I'll be all clear."

"They tend to eat more fatty foods and less fruit and veg.

"Both of those things increase reflux disease, where acid comes up from the stomach."

But Professor Jankowski said obesity may be a big reason behind the increase.

"Being overweight significantly increases the risk of adenocarcinoma - the main type of oesophageal cancer that's on the up.

"Men tend to put weight on their abdomen as beer bellies and become oranges, - whereas women tend to put it on differently and become pears."

He said having fat on the abdomen was riskier in this context because it put pressure on the stomach.

The researchers are also studying genetic changes that also appear to be linked to the disease.

Dr Lesley Walker, director of cancer information at Cancer Research UK, said: "These new figures are particularly concerning as oesophageal cancer is a very difficult cancer to treat.

"Oesophageal cancer rates have risen dramatically in the UK compared with many other Western countries so we need to determine the underlying causes.

"To combat the poor survival rate for oesophageal cancer, Cancer Research UK is funding research to find new ways to identify the disease earlier and improve treatment so that more people beat the disease."