Preoperative multidetector-row computed tomography scan staging for lymphatic gastric cancer spread.

Background: Multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT) is commonly used to stage patients with gastric cancer, even though the technique often shows low specificity for lymph-node involvement.

Methods: In this study, 111 patients with gastric cancer who consecutively underwent MDCT scan followed by radical surgical treatment at our hospital were retrospectively evaluated.

Results: In total, 3632 lymph nodes from 643 lymphatic stations were studied and then correlated with radiological features.