Association of the primary tumor's SUVmax with survival after surgery for clinical stage IA esophageal cancer: a single-center retrospective study.

The SUVmax of the primary tumor is a predictor of postoperative survival for clinical stage IA esophageal cancer. Thus, using fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography to evaluate the primary tumor's glucose metabolism may reflect the tumor's grade and potentially compensate for inaccuracies in tumor-node-metastasis staging.