title: Role of endoscopic ultrasonography in the loco-regional staging of patients with rectal cancer.
abstract: The prognosis of rectal cancer (RC) is strictly related to both T and N stage of the disease at the time of diagnosis. RC staging is crucial for choosing the best multimodal therapy: patients with high risk locally advanced RC (LARC) undergo surgery after neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy (NAT); those with low risk LARC are operated on after a preoperative short-course radiation therapy; finally, surgery alone is recommended only for early RC. Several imaging methods are used for staging patients with RC: computerized tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, and endoscopic ultrasound (EUS). EUS is highly accurate for the loco-regional staging of RC, since it is capable to evaluate precisely the mural infiltration of the tumor (T), especially in early RC. On the other hand, EUS is less accurate in restaging RC after NAT and before surgery. Finally, EUS is indicated for follow-up of patients operated on for RC, where there is a need for the surveillance of the anastomosis. The aim of this review is to highlight the impact of EUS on the management of patients with RC, evaluating its role in both preoperative staging and follow-up of patients after surgery.
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Marone
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: de Bellis
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: D'Angelo
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Delrio
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Passananti
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Di Girolamo
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni Battista
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rega
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Maura Claire
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Tracey
authors.affiliation: Pietro Marone, Mario de Bellis, Valentina D'Angelo, Elena Di Girolamo, Giovanni Battista Rossi, Alfonso Mario Tempesta, Endoscopy Unit, Istituto Nazionale Tumori - IRCCS, 80131 Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Alfonso Mario
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Tempesta
keywords: Accuracy; Endoscopic ultrasonography; Rectal cancer; Staging; Therapeutic strategy