Kim Kardashian disclosed an esophagitis diagnosis in a new “Kardashians” trailer, prompting concern because her father died from esophageal cancer in 2003.

The SKIMS founder says, “I have something called esophagitis,” in the season eight trailer, ABC News reported. The trailer does not disclose the cause, type or severity of her condition.

Esophagitis is inflammation or irritation of the tube that carries food from the mouth to the stomach. Fox News explained that esophagitis and esophageal cancer are different conditions, despite the family history raised in the trailer.

An unidentified person asks Kardashian whether the condition was what her father died from. She answers, “Yeah.” Her mother, Kris Jenner, later says, “I can’t, it makes me want to cry.”

Robert Kardashian died from esophageal cancer in September 2003. He had learned of his diagnosis two months earlier, according to ABC News.

Esophagitis has several causes, but Kardashian has not disclosed hers

MedlinePlus, a health resource run by the National Library of Medicine, describes esophagitis as swelling, inflammation or irritation of the esophageal lining. It says the condition is “often caused by stomach fluid that flows back into the food pipe.”

Other possible causes include irritation from medication, infections and allergies. The New York Post noted that Kardashian has not revealed her specific type of esophagitis or what caused it.

Symptoms can include heartburn, coughing, hoarseness and a sore throat. Some patients may also have trouble swallowing or experience pain when they swallow.

Those details matter because the broad diagnosis alone does not explain Kardashian’s medical outlook. Treatment, MedlinePlus says, “depends on the cause.”

Treatment can range from diet changes to medication

MedlinePlus lists several possible treatments. Doctors may use medicine to reduce stomach acid, coat the esophagus or treat an infection. Diet changes may also form part of treatment.

For infections, treatment can include “antibiotics, antifungals, and antivirals to treat different infections.” A doctor may take a different approach when the inflammation involves “damage related to pills.”

The general outlook is often favorable. MedlinePlus states that most disorders causing swelling and inflammation in the food pipe respond to treatment.

But long-lasting inflammation tied to acid reflux can sometimes contribute to Barrett esophagus. That condition involves stomach acid damaging the esophageal lining and causing changes in its cells.

MedlinePlus says Barrett esophagus “may lead to cancer of the food pipe.” Fox News and the New York Post both noted that most people with Barrett esophagus do not develop esophageal cancer, and the overall risk remains low.

Family history adds fear, but it does not erase the medical distinction

The National Cancer Institute defines esophageal cancer as a disease in which malignant cells form in the tissues of the esophagus. That is not the diagnosis Kardashian announced.

The trailer’s brief exchange links her condition emotionally to her father’s death, but it offers few medical details. It does not identify Kardashian’s symptoms, treatment plan or prognosis.

Season eight of “The Kardashians” is scheduled to premiere October 8 on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+. The diagnosis disclosure appears in the official trailer released ahead of that premiere.

A famous name can draw attention to a diagnosis. Clear medical distinctions matter more than fear, especially when a family’s history carries such weight.