Perioperative chemotherapy in locally advanced gastric cancer in Chile: From evidence to daily practice.

Abstract

92 Background: Gastric cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in Chile, with mortality rate of 26.7/100.000 in men, placing the country among the highest mortality rates worldwide. For locally advanced gastric cancer, a multimodality treatment is recommended, but in Chile, the treatment covered by the public health insurance, which assists more than 70% of the patients, is surgery alone. We conducted an observational study to assess efficacy and toxicity of perioperative chemotherapy (CT) in public hospitals in Chile (NCT01633203). Methods: Patients with locally advanced, operable gastric carcinoma, defined as presence of invasion of serosa or beyond (cT > 3 AJCC 2002) and/or lymph node metastasis (cN+) without distant metastasis (M0), were offered to receive preoperative CT with Epirubicin+Cisplatin+Capecitabine (ECX) regimen for 3 cycles followed by curative surgery with D2 lymphadenectomy. Staging abdominal CT scan was mandatory, laparoscopy was recommended. Patients with gastric retention, severe dysphagia or contraindications for CT were excluded. All patients signed the IRB approved informed consent form prior to enrolment. Data were collected using the OpenClinica platform. Results: Between August 2010 and March 2013, 110 patients were screened and 61 enrolled. Median age was 62 years (23-76 years) and most patients had good performance status at baseline (ECOG 0: 42, ECOG 1: 19). Tumor site was proximal in 24 (39%), medial in 16 (26%) and distal in 10 patients (16%). All but 4 patients (n = 57, 93%) completed three cycles of preoperative CT as planned. Fifty-five patients were operated and 54 (89%) had curative R0 resection. Of these, 36 (67%) had pT0-2, and 15 (28%) had pN0 tumors. A complete pathological response was found in 2 patients. Two patients were not operated for other reasons (one patient refused surgery and one patient presented a cerebrovascular accident during preoperative CT and died), and 5 patients (8%) progressed. As of September 1, 2015, 32 patients died. Three-year survival rate was 49%. Conclusions: Perioperative CT is feasible in public hospitals in Chile and should be offered as an alternative to primary surgery for patients with locally advanced gastric cancer.