title: Role of preoperative CT colonography in patients with colorectal cancer.
abstract: In patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), accurate preoperative evaluation is essential for a correct therapeutic plan. Colonoscopy and intravenous contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) are currently recommended in the preoperative work-up for CRC. Preoperative colonoscopy has some limitations such as misdiagnosis of synchronous cancers in cases of incomplete exploration of the colon and inaccurate tumor localization. Intravenous contrast-enhanced CT successfully documents distant metastases although it sometimes enables unsatisfactory locoregional staging. Computed tomography colonography (CTC) is obtained after gas insufflation of the colon and offers a comprehensive preoperative evaluation in patients with CRC, including a definition of the segmental location of the tumor, presence of synchronous lesions or lack thereof, and fairly accurate locoregional staging. CTC has some limitations, including a lack of biopsy capability, suboptimal sensitivity for synchronous small polyps, and unsatisfactory nodal staging. Bearing in mind these limitations, CTC could be employed as a "one-stop-shop" examination for preoperative assessment in patients with CRC.
authors.affiliation: Lapo Sali, Massimo Falchini, Mario Mascalchi, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences, University of Florence, 50134 Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Lapo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sali
authors.affiliation: Lapo Sali, Massimo Falchini, Mario Mascalchi, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences, University of Florence, 50134 Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Falchini
authors.affiliation: Lapo Sali, Massimo Falchini, Mario Mascalchi, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences, University of Florence, 50134 Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Taddei
authors.affiliation: Lapo Sali, Massimo Falchini, Mario Mascalchi, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences, University of Florence, 50134 Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mascalchi
mesh_terms: D023881:Colonography, Computed Tomographic; D003113:Colonoscopy; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery*; D003287:Contrast Media / Q000737:chemistry; D005060:Europe; D006801:Humans; D007327:Insufflation; D007415:Intestinal Obstruction / Q000601:surgery; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009378:Neoplasms, Multiple Primary / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D057234:Preoperative Period
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media
keywords: Cancer staging; Colonoscopy, Computed tomography colonography; Colorectal cancer; Synchronous cancer
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