Staging in Esophageal and Gastric Cancers

Gastric and esophageal tumors have a poor prognosis; approximately 15% of patients are alive at 10 years following diagnosis. Surgical resection plus adjunctive chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy is curative in approximately 50% of patients with operable disease, but is also associated with significant morbidity. Therefore, accurate preoperative staging is required to spare patients unnecessary toxicity and futile surgery. This review evaluates the sensitivity and specificities of the modalities used to stage patients with gastroesophageal cancer. Staging techniques reviewed include CT, PET, MRI, EUS, and laparoscopy. The article concludes with suggestions on appropriate staging tools according to site and stage of disease.