To determine the clinical relevance of CHRNA7 in ESCC, we analyzed a tissue microarray with ESCC specimens and their non-cancerous surrounding tissues from 104 patients and found that cells in ESCC tissues expressed significantly higher levels of CHRNA7 than that of non-tumorous tissues (P < 0.001, Wilcoxon matched-pair signed-rank test; Fig. 3a). The gene discussed is CHRNA7; the disease is esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.