Safety Of Preoperative Chemoradiotherapy Research Articles

Efficacy and safety of preoperative chemoradiotherapy with S-1 for advanced rectal cancer: a phase II study.

Preoperative chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for patients with rectal cancer is not yet established in Japan. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of preoperative CRT with S-1, a fixed-dose combination of tegafur, gimeracil, and oteracil potassium. We conducted a prospective, interventional, non-randomized single-center study. Radiotherapy was administered at a total dose of 45 Gy (1.8 Gy in 25 fractions) for five weeks. S-1 was administered orally for nine weeks (five weeks during and four weeks after radiotherapy) at a dose of 80 mg/m2/day. The endpoint was the pathological complete response (pCR) rate. Twenty-eight patients were finally enrolled. The following patient characteristics were recorded: clinical Stage (II: n = 12, III: n = 16), median age (66 years, range 40-77 years), male/female ratio (20/8), and lesion site (Ra-Rb:3/Rb:23/Rb-P:2). Preoperative treatment was completed in 27 patients (96%). Treatment abandonment occurred because of diarrhea. Grade 3 or higher adverse events were observed in one (4%) patient with two events. No serious adverse events occurred in the ≥ 70 years group. The response rate was 68% in all patients and 68% among elderly patients. Radical resection was achieved in all patients, including 19 (68%) who underwent sphincter-preserving surgery. The pCR rate was 11% (three patients). The five-year disease-free survival rate was 68%, and the overall survival rate was 82%. Local recurrence occurred in only one patient five years after surgery. Preoperative CRT with S-1 alone may be a safe and acceptable regimen from the perspective of adverse events and oncological outcomes. UMIN Clinical Trial Registry: UMIN000013598. Registered 1 April 2014, https://upload.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/ctr_e/ctr_view.cgi?recpt-no=R000015887.

Regional Hyperthermia in Neo-Adjuvant Chemoradiotherapy of Rectal Cancer

Rectal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors of the gastrointestinal tract. Recent studies have shown the high efficiency and impact of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy on the number of sphincterpreserving surgeries, and local-regional control. The article discusses the effectiveness and safety of preoperative chemoradiotherapy against the background of regional hyperthermia in the treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer.

Comparison of efficacy and safety of preoperative Chemoradiotherapy in locally advanced upper and middle/lower rectal cancer

BackgroundWe aimed to explore the efficacy and safety profile of preoperative neoadjuvant chemoradiation (NACRT) in locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) in upper rectum versus middle/lower rectum.MethodsThe study included 173 patients with stage II or III (T2-4b, N0-2b) LARC who underwent NACRT followed by total mesorectal excision (TME) between January 2011 and October 2016. Cox regression, log-rank test, and Kaplan–Meier curves were calculated.ResultsAmong the 173 patients, 58 had lesions in the upper rectum and 115 patients had lesions in middle/lower rectum. In a median follow-up of 35 months (range, 6–73 months), the 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were 84% and 88% for the patients with upper rectal cancer and 77% and 68% for those with middle/lower rectal cancer (P = 0.251 and P = 0.058, respectively). The 5-year DFS (P = 0.012) and OS (P = 0.003) were better in the NACRT responders [tumor regression grade (TRG) 0 or 1] compared with nonresponders (TRG 2 or 3). The independent prognostic factor of favorable response to NACRT was the FOLFOX regimen (P = 0.004).ConclusionsPatients with LARC in the upper rectum who underwent NACRT followed by TME had similar DFS and a trend toward longer OS, compared with those who had middle/lower rectal lesions. Furthermore, FOLFOX may yield superior results than fluoropyrimidine based regimen during NACRT. NACRT might be an alternative option for patients with LARC in the upper rectum as it has a favorable pathological complete response rate and comparable clinical outcomes when compared with patients with LARC in middle/lower rectum.

TOPGEAR: An international randomized phase III trial of preoperative chemoradiotherapy versus preoperative chemotherapy for resectable gastric cancer (AGITG/TROG/EORTC/NCIC CTG).

TPS4141 Background: Optimal management of patients with resectable gastric cancer remains unknown. Since the INT0116 and MAGIC trials, there are 2 standards of care for adjuvant therapy: postoperative chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and perioperative ECF chemotherapy. The important question arising from these studies is whether CRT is superior to chemotherapy alone as adjuvant therapy. This randomized phase II/III trial will compare CRT to chemotherapy alone in the preoperative setting. Methods: Patients with resectable adenocarcinoma of the stomach or gastroesophageal junction will be randomized to receive either preoperative chemotherapy alone (ECFx3 as per MAGIC regimen) or preoperative CRT (ECFx2 followed by 45Gy of radiation with concurrent 5-FU). Following surgery, both groups will receive 3 further cycles of ECF. The trial is being conducted in two Parts; Part I (phase II component) will recruit 120 patients with the aim of demonstrating sufficient efficacy and safety of preoperative CRT, as well as trial feasibility. Part II (phase III component) will recruit a further 632 patients to provide a total of 752. The primary endpoint for Part I is pathological complete response rate, and for Part 2 it is overall survival. The trial includes formal quality of life and biological sub-studies. In addition, the trial incorporates a rigorous quality assurance program that includes real time central review of radiotherapy plans and central review of surgical technique. Current status: This study is an international, intergroup trial led by the Australasian Gastro-Intestinal Trials Group (AGITG), in collaboration with the Trans-Tasman Radiation Oncology Group (TROG), European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) and the NCIC Clinical Trials Group. To date, 36 patients have been recruited from 20 sites in Australia and New Zealand; European and Canadian sites will commence recruitment in 2012.

Long-term results from a randomized phase II trial of neoadjuvant combined-modality therapy for locally advanced rectal cancer

BackgroundThis study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of preoperative chemoradiotherapy with capecitabine in patients with locally advanced resectable rectal cancer. This report summarizes the results of the phase II study together with long-term (5-year) follow-up.MethodsBetween June 2004 and January 2005, 57 patients with operable, clinical stage II-III adenocarcinoma of the rectum entered the study. Radiation dose was 45 Gy delivered as 25 fractions of 1.8 Gy. Concurrent chemotherapy with oral capecitabine 825 mg/m2 twice daily was administered during radiotherapy and at weekends. Surgery was scheduled 6 weeks after the completion of the chemoradiotherapy. Patients received four cycles of postoperative chemotherapy comprising either capecitabine 1250 mg/m2 bid days 1-14 every 3 weeks or bolus i.v. 5-fluorouracil 425 mg/m2/day and leucovorin 20 mg/m2/day days 1-5 every 4 weeks (choice was at the oncologist's discretion). Study endpoints included complete pathological remission, proportion of R0 resections and sphincter-sparing procedures, toxicity, survival parameters and long-term (5-year) rectal and urogenital morbidity assessment.ResultsOne patient died after receiving 27 Gy because of a pulmonary embolism. Fifty-six patients completed radiochemotherapy and had surgery. Median follow-up time was 62 months. No patients were lost to follow-up. R0 resection was achieved in 55 patients. A complete pathological response was observed in 5 patients (9.1%); T-, N- and overall downstaging rates were 40%, 52.9% and 49.1%, respectively. The 5-year overall survival rate, recurrence-free survival, and local control was 61.4% (95% CI: 48.9-73.9%), 52.4% (95% CI: 39.3-65.5%), and 87.4% (95% CI: 75.0-99.8%), respectively. In 5 patients local relapse has occurred; dissemination was observed in 19 patients and secondary malignancies have occurred in 2 patients. The most frequent side-effect of the preoperative combined therapy was dermatitis (grade 3 in 19 patients). The proportion of patients with severe late (SOMA grade 3 and 4) rectal, bladder and sexual toxicity was 40%, 19.2% and 51.7%, respectively.ConclusionsThis study confirms data from other non-randomised studies that capecitabine-based preoperative chemoradiation is a feasible treatment option for locally advanced rectal cancer, with positive 5-year overall survival, recurrence-free survival, and local control rates.