Ultrasound for cancer diagnosis

Advocate Health Care is one of the few healthcare providers in the Chicago region to offer both endoscopic and endobronchial ultrasound, and our gastroenterologists are some of the most experienced in using this technology to diagnose and stage cancer of the digestive system.

Endoscopic ultrasound

Endoscopic ultrasound, otherwise known as endosonography, is an advanced procedure that combines endoscopy and ultrasound to create more detailed images of the esophagus and other digestive tract structures, including lymph nodes. This more detailed information is useful in determining cancer staging for lesions in the esophagus, liver, pancreas, stomach and bile duct.

Endoscopic ultrasound can find tumors less than 1 cm, which can't be seen in a CT scan. It also helps your physician distinguish between cysts and tumors, without making an incision.

In addition to staging, endoscopic ultrasound can be used to relieve pain associated with cancer. Using the ultrasound imaging, physicians guide a special needle through the scope and directly to nerve fibers, administering treatment that prevents pain.

Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS)

Endobronchial ultrasound involves a special endoscope with ultrasound built into the tip, allowing physicians to view inside your airway and into the lungs and lymph nodes to detect tumors as small as a centimeter in size. Using this breakthrough technology, our thoracic surgeons can biopsy even tiny tumors and stage the cancer before major surgery, which can significantly change the management of the tumor and improve your outcome.