Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Feb;20(2):231-8.
doi: 10.1093/annonc/mdn622. Epub 2008 Oct 3.

Histological type of esophageal cancer might affect response to neo-adjuvant radiochemotherapy and subsequent prognosis

E Bollschweiler  1 , R Metzger, U Drebber, S Baldus, D Vallböhmer, M Kocher, A H Hölscher
Affiliations
Free article

Histological type of esophageal cancer might affect response to neo-adjuvant radiochemotherapy and subsequent prognosis

E Bollschweiler et al. Ann Oncol. 2009 Feb.
Free article

Abstract

Background: This study investigates response and prognosis after neo-adjuvant chemoradiation (CTx/RTx) in patients with advanced esophageal carcinoma, according to histological type.

Patients and methods: Patients with uT3 carcinoma of the esophagus treated with curative-intention esophagectomy from 1997 until 2006 were included in this retrospective analysis. Patients receiving preoperative CTx/RTx (5-fluorouracil, cisplatin, 36 Gy) were compared with those with primary surgery for pT3 tumors. Therapy response after CTx/RTx was evaluated using 'Cologne Regression Grade' (minor response: >or=10% vital residual tumor cells (VRTCs), major response: <10% VRTC or pathologic complete response). Prognosis was evaluated for adenocarcinoma (AC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

Results: Of 297 patients, 52% were SCC and 48% AC. In all, 192 patients underwent CTx/RTx, 100 (65%) SCC and 92 (64%) AC (nonsignificant). In SCC group 51% and in AC group 29% achieved major response (P < 0.01). Patients with major response had a 2-year survival rate (2y-SR) of 78% versus those with minor response or without CTx/RTx, with a 2y-SR of 45% (P = 0.001). Examining patients with major response exclusively, the prognosis of AC (2y-SR 85%) is better than that of SCC (2y-SR 54%) (P < 0.01).

Conclusion: This retrospective study concludes that in esophageal tumors, response to and prognosis after neo-adjuvant CTx/RTx vary according to histology.

PubMed Disclaimer

MeSH terms