Staging criteria for @entity5 are based on survival groupings that allow the stage groups to be used as prognosticators for @entity5 treatment. Definitive staging of @entity418 facilitates allocation of @entity1 to appropriate treatment regimens according to each @entity1 's stage. Existing noninvasive staging methods are imperfect in detecting abdominal and thoracic lymph node @entity3 in @entity1 with @entity418 . Thoracoscopy is an excellent means for staging the chest and mediastinum. We have used thoracoscopic lymph node staging and laparoscopic lymph node staging for @entity418 since 1992. Thoracoscopy was performed in 45 @entity1 with biopsy specimen-proved @entity189 . Laparoscopy was done in the last 20 @entity1 . Laparoscopic-assisted feeding jejunostomies were performed in @entity1 with obstructive symptoms. Directed liver biopsies were performed if lesions were present. Thoracoscopy was aborted in three @entity1 because of adhesions. @entity5 was N0 in 40 @entity1 and N1 in 3. Celiac lymph nodes were normal in 14 @entity1 and abnormal in 6. Esophageal resection was performed in 30 @entity1 after thoracoscopic lymph node staging; 18 of these underwent laparoscopic lymph node staging. Thoracoscopic staging showed N0 lymph node status in 28 @entity1 and N1 in 2. Two of these N0 @entity1 (7%) were found at resection to have paraesophageal lymph involvement (N1). Thoracoscopic lymph node staging was accurate in detecting the status of thoracic lymph nodes in 28 of 30 cases (93%). Laparoscopic staging found normal celiac nodes in 13 @entity1 and abnormal lymph nodes in 5. After esophagectomy, final pathologic finding of the 13 N0 @entity1 was N0 in 12 @entity1 and N1 in 1 @entity1 . Thus, laparoscopic lymph node staging was accurate in detecting lymph node status in 17 of 18 @entity1 (94%). Six of 20 @entity1 undergoing laparoscopy had unsuspected celiac axis lymph node involvement missed by standard noninvasive techniques. Three percent of thoracic lymph nodes and 17% of celiac lymph nodes were downstaged after preoperative chemoradiotherapy. Thoracoscopic and laparoscopic lymph node staging are more accurate than existing staging methods.

Advances in staging of XXXX .

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients', 'patient'] @entity5 :: ('MESH:D009369', 'Disease') :: ['thoracic malignancies', 'cancer', 'Thoracic lymph node stage'] @entity189 :: ('MESH:D002277', 'Disease') :: ['carcinoma of the esophagus'] @entity418 :: ('MESH:D004938', 'Disease') :: ['esophageal cancer'] @entity3 :: ('MESH:D009362', 'Disease') :: ['metastases']
@entity418 :: (MESH:D004938,Disease) :: ['esophageal carcinoma']
