title: Future directions in esophageal cancer.
abstract: The incidence of esophageal cancer in the United States has been increasing in recent years. Since multimodality therapy for esophageal cancer has produced discouraging results, recent approaches have focused on molecular biological techniques, positron emission tomography, and minimally invasive surgery to improve pretreatment staging which will facilitate a more accurate assessment of new treatment. This article summarizes the results of studies investigating these approaches and outlines the strategy currently used at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Surgery, Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, PA 15213-3221, USA.
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Luketich
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Schauer
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Urso
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kassis
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ferson
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Keenan
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Landreneau
mesh_terms: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000032:analysis; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000235:genetics / Q000601:surgery; D016629:Esophagectomy / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging
chemical_list: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm