Preoperative staging of esophageal and gastric carcinoma

Preoperative staging is of paramount importance for a patient with cancer of the upper GI tract. Because the outcome of esophageal and gastric cancer is strongly related to stage, an effort has been made during the last years with respect to preoperative staging before considering application of treatment aimed at curing the disease, prolonging survival, or palliating symptoms. Esophagectomy is accompanied by the highest mortality reported for any electively performed surgical procedure. The poor performance status of most patients and the difficulty of the operative procedure are responsible for an in-hospital mortality rate that, at the beginning of 1980’s, was almost 30%, although this figure seems to be rather better today.