The main first staging after a diagnosis has been made is to ascertain if the disease is localised within the oesophagus or whether it has spread outside this structure. A CT scan of the chest and a PET ( positron emission tomography) are the staging tests of choice. The disease spreads outside the oesophagus to regional lymph nodes (the upper third growths going to the lower neck regions first and the lower third ones spreading to the nodes around the stomach first). Spread inside the chest may threaten the bronchial tubes by encirclement and spread downwards may be to the liver.
