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Esophageal Case Study



Case History
This patient is a 52-year-old male with dysphagia was recently diagnosed with esophageal cancer by endoscopic biopsy. The patient's CT scan showed thickening of the distal esophagus but was otherwise normal in the chest, abdomen and pelvis.
PET Scan Results
The intense hypermetabolism in the distal esophagus corresponds to the patient's known carcinoma (long arrow). A second abnormality is located within the celiac region, consistent with a nodal metastasis (short arrow).
PET Outcome

The patient received radiation therapy and chemotherapy prior to surgical removal of the distal esophagus. At the time of surgery, lymph nodes removed from the celiac region contained microscopic metastatic cancer. The patient received additional chemotherapy following recovery from surgery.

Whole body PET scanning demonstrated nodal metastases not detected by conventional staging. Correct staging of this patient, lead to the use of aggressive preoperative chemotherapy and radiation to improve chances of curative surgery.