Use of Positron Emission Tomography in Surgery Follow-Up of Esophageal Cancer

Introduction Although the prognosis of patients with esophageal cancer has been improved by extended dissection, the incidence of recurrence still remains high. In esophageal cancer, positron emission tomography (PET) using 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) already demonstrated to be useful for initial staging and monitoring response to therapy. This prospective study compared the ability of FDG-PET and conventional imaging to detect early recurrence of esophageal cancer after initial surgery in asymptomatic patients.