18F-fluorodeoxiglucose positron emission tomography for the evaluation of neoadjuvant therapy response in esophageal cancer: systematic review of the literature.

Neoadjuvant treatment is a relatively new therapeutic approach for locally advanced esophageal cancer. Response assessment is crucial for the treatment of these patients. Cross sectional imaging has traditionally being used as the elective method of response assessment. Recently, 18F fluorodeoxyglucose- positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) has emerged as a new valuable tool defining therapy response assessment in other tumors.