Accuracy of computed tomography in staging colon cancer patients.

614 Background: Though adjuvant chemotherapy is well-established for treating patients with AJCC Stage III colon cancer, there is growing interest in giving chemotherapy neoadjuvantly for these patients. Since clinical staging to determine eligibility requires accurate preoperative imaging, our objective was to determine whether computed tomography (CT) scans can be used to detect nodal disease in colon cancer patients. Methods: We identified patients with AJCC stage I-III colon cancer who underwent curative resection between 2006 and 2010 at our institution. Patient CT scans were obtained and final radiologic reports were recorded in a database. CT images underwent secondary prospective review by a blinded independent surgeon with the intent to identify mesenteric lymphadenopathy (N+). Clinical staging from the original radiologic report and secondary surgeon review of the CT images were then compared with pathologic staging. Results: Imaging and pathology were available for 67 colon cancer patients. Ori...