Cancer du rectum: bilan préopératoire

Information concerning the depth of tumour infiltration of the rectal wall and lymph nodes, and the presence of distant metastasis is crucial when planning a curative rectal cancer resection. Preoperative staging is used to determine if neoadjuvant therapy is indicated, as well as whether local excision or radical tumour resection will provide optimal surgical outcome. The most common imaging modalities currently used in the preoperative staging of rectal cancer are endorectal ultrasound, CT scan, and MRI.