Role of ultrasonography in the staging of gastrointestinal neoplasms

This article reviews the capabilities and limits of ultrasonography (US) in the staging of gastrointestinal neoplasms. US is a well-established tool i n the investigation of abdominal diseases. Its role is very important in th e first approach to liver, gallbladder, biliary, and pancreatic diseases, b ut its abilities for accurate staging may be limited by various factors, wh ich will be discussed. In the evaluation of the stomach and intestine, US i s rarely utilized, but it can occasionally demonstrate an unsuspected gastr ointestinal mass that usually must be evaluated further with specific techn iques (endoscopy and barium studies) to confirm the diagnosis and to perfor m an accurate staging (with endosonography and computed tomography). (C) 20 01 Wiley-Liss, Inc.