Hot tea is not the only beverage linked to esophageal cancer. Drinking alcohol and using tobacco also ups the risk for cancer in the windpipe.
But unlike booze and cigarettes, Malekzadeh said evidence in his study showed it's not the chemicals in the tea that matters.
"It doesn't seem to be that," he said. "Especially this specific type of cancer -- the so called squamous cell cancer."
Past studies comparing adjacent tea drinking areas in Linxian, China and areas surrounding the Golestan province in Iran, showed temperature affects cancer rates, according to data cited in Malekzadeh's article. Esophageal cancer numbers rose in regions where people preferred their tea very hot, and dropped where tea was served at a cooler temperature.
But gastroenterologists aren't entirely convinced of hot tea's effects. Dr. Jennifer Christie, an assistant professor in the Division of Gastroenterology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, said she's not making any new recommendations to her patients yet.
"I think it's an important study and it clearly adds to our knowledge about esophageal cancer," said Christie. "But I would not tell people to stop drinking hot tea at this point. Also there's diet, and you have to look at genetic factors that are involved, as well."
Christie said esophageal cancer, especially the squamous cell variety, is much more prevalent in Asian and South American countries than in the United States.
"So there's not a recommended screening for esophageal cancer in the U.S.," she said.
Instead, Christie said U.S. doctors perform esophageal testing based on symptoms.
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