Validation and refinement of the 8th edition of the AJCC staging system for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma treated with definitive IMRT or chemo-IMRT: a Chinese multi-institutional retrospective study

Combining T4a/T4b and SLN subclassification enhanced prognostic precision in ESCC, with the autoRPA staging demonstrating superior hazard consistency, sample balance, and predictive accuracy compared to the 8th edition AJCC staging, thereby guiding therapeutic strategies.