What Are the Stages of Esophageal Cancer?

This content has been reviewed and approved by

Chandra P. Belani, MD
Deputy Director, Penn State Cancer Institute
Miriam Beckner Professor of Medicine
Penn State University School of Medicine

When your doctor diagnoses esophageal cancer, tests will determine how much cancer is present, and if the cancer has spread, or metastasized, from the esophagus to other parts of the body. This process is called staging and is an important step toward planning a treatment program. The National Cancer Institute defines the following stages for esophageal cancer:

• Stage 0 (T0) (carcinoma in situ) - The cancer is present only in the superficial (top) layer of cells lining the esophagus. Although these are usually small cancers, they may sometimes spread and involve a large part of the esophagus.
• Stage I (T1) - The cancer is only in the top layers of the cells lining the esophagus.
• Stage II (T2) - The cancer involves deeper layers of the lining of the esophagus or it has spread to nearby lymph nodes. However, the cancer has not spread to other parts of the body.
• Stage III (T3) - The cancer has spread into the wall of the esophagus or to tissues or lymph nodes near the esophagus. However, it has not spread to other parts of the body.
• Stage IV (T4) - The cancer has spread to other parts of the body, such as the liver or lungs.