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de Moraes FCA, Kelly FA, Souza MEC, Burbano RMR. Impact of adjuvant chemotherapy on survival after pathological complete response in rectal cancer: a meta-analysis of 31,558 patients. Int J Colorectal Dis 2024; 39:96. [PMID: 38913175 PMCID: PMC11196358 DOI: 10.1007/s00384-024-04668-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/25/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) typically involves neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) followed by surgery (total mesorectal excision, TME). While achieving a complete pathological response (pCR) is a strong indicator of a positive prognosis, the specific benefits of adjuvant chemotherapy after pCR remain unclear. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the potential advantages of adjuvant therapy in patients who achieve pCR. METHODS In this study, we searched Medline, Embase, and Web of Science databases for relevant research. We focused on binary outcomes, analyzing them using odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). To account for potential variability between studies, all endpoints were analyzed with DerSimonian and Laird random-effects models. We assessed heterogeneity using the I2 statistic and employed the R statistical software (version 4.2.3) for all analyses. RESULTS Thirty-four studies, comprising 31,558 patients, were included. The outcomes demonstrated a significant difference favoring the AC group in terms of overall survival (OS) (HR 0.75; 95% CI 0.60-0.94; p = 0.015; I2 = 0%), and OS in 5 years (OR 1.65; 95% CI 1.21-2.24; p = 0.001; I2 = 39%). There was no significant difference between the groups for disease-free survival (DFS) (HR 0.94; 95% CI 0.76-1.17; p = 0.61; I2 = 17%), DFS in 5 years (OR 1.19; 95% CI 0.82-1.74; p = 0.36; I2 = 43%), recurrence-free survival (RFS) (HR 1.10; 95% CI 0.87-1.40; p = 0.39; I2 = 0%), and relapse-free survival (OR 1.08; 95% CI 0.78-1.51; p = 0.62; I2 = 0%). CONCLUSION This systematic review and meta-analysis found a significant difference in favor of the ACT group in terms of survival after pCR. Therefore, the administration of this treatment as adjuvant therapy should be encouraged in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Francinny Alves Kelly
- Department of Hypertension, Dante Pazzanese Institute of Cardiology, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Rommel Mario Rodríguez Burbano
- Federal University of Pará, Rua Augusto Corrêa, nº 01, Guamá, Belém, Pará, 66073-000, Brazil
- Ophir Loyola Hospital, Belém, Pará, Brazil
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Zwart WH, Temmink SJD, Hospers GAP, Marijnen CAM, Putter H, Nagtegaal ID, Blomqvist L, Kranenbarg EMK, Roodvoets AGH, Martling A, van de Velde CJH, Glimelius B, Peeters KCMJ, van Etten B, Nilsson PJ. Oncological outcomes after a pathological complete response following total neoadjuvant therapy or chemoradiotherapy for high-risk locally advanced rectal cancer in the RAPIDO trial. Eur J Cancer 2024; 204:114044. [PMID: 38636289 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejca.2024.114044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A pathological complete response (pCR) following chemoradiation (CRT) or short-course radiotherapy (scRT) leads to a favourable prognosis in patients with rectal cancer. Total neo-adjuvant therapy (TNT) doubles the pCR rate, but it is unknown whether oncological outcomes remain favourable and whether the same characteristics are associated with pCR as after CRT. METHODS Comparison between patients with pCR in the RAPIDO trial in the experimental [EXP] (scRT, chemotherapy, surgery, as TNT) and standard-of-care treatment [STD] (CRT, surgery, postoperative chemotherapy depending on hospital policy) groups. Primary and secondary outcomes were time-to-recurrence (TTR), overall survival (OS) and association between patient, tumour, and treatment characteristics and pCR. RESULTS Among patients with a resection within six months after preoperative treatment, 120/423 (28%) [EXP] and 57/398 (14%) [STD] achieved a pCR. Following pCR, 5-year cumulative TTR and OS rates in the EXP and STD arms were 8% vs. 7% (hazard ratio 1.04, 95%CI 0.32-3.38) and 94% vs. 93% (hazard ratio 1.41, 95%CI 0.51-3.92), respectively. Besides the EXP treatment (odds ratio 2.70, 95%CI 1.83-3.97), pre-treatment carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) <5, pre-treatment tumour size <40 mm and cT2 were associated with pCR. Distance from the anal verge was the only characteristic with a statistically significant difference in association with pCR between the EXP and STD treatment (Pinteraction=0.042). pCR rates did not increase with prolonged treatment time. CONCLUSIONS The doubled pCR rate of TNT compared to CRT results in similar oncological outcomes. Characteristics associated with pCR are the EXP treatment, normal CEA, and small tumour size.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wouter H Zwart
- University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Medical Oncology, Groningen, the Netherlands.
| | - Sofieke J D Temmink
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Geke A P Hospers
- University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Medical Oncology, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Corrie A M Marijnen
- Netherlands Cancer Institute, Department of Radiation Oncology, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Radiation Oncology, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Hein Putter
- Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Iris D Nagtegaal
- Radboud University Medical Centre, Department of Pathology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Lennart Blomqvist
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Annet G H Roodvoets
- Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Surgery, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Anna Martling
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Bengt Glimelius
- Uppsala University, Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Koen C M J Peeters
- Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Surgery, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Boudewijn van Etten
- University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Surgery, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Per J Nilsson
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Stockholm, Sweden
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Yang J, Deng Q, Cheng Y, Fu Z, Wu X. Effect of adjuvant chemotherapy on the oncological outcome of rectal cancer patients with pathological complete response. World J Surg Oncol 2024; 22:31. [PMID: 38273352 PMCID: PMC10809453 DOI: 10.1186/s12957-024-03300-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/13/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Locally advanced rectal cancer is typically treated using a combination of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and total mesorectal resection. While achieving pathological complete response following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy has been recognized as a positive prognostic factor in oncology, the necessity of adjuvant chemotherapy for locally advanced rectal cancer patients with pathological complete response after surgery remains uncertain. The objective of this meta-analysis was to examine the impact of adjuvant chemotherapy on the oncological outcomes of rectal cancer patients who attain pathological complete response after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. METHODS This meta-analysis followed the guidelines outlined in the preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis (PRISMA). The Web of Science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched to identify relevant literature. RESULTS A total of 34 retrospective studies, including 9 studies from the NCBD database, involving 31,558 patients with pathological complete response rectal cancer, were included in the meta-analysis. The included studies were published between 2008 and 2023. The pooled analysis demonstrated that adjuvant chemotherapy significantly improved overall survival (HR = 0.803, 95% CI 0.678-0.952, P = 0.011), and no heterogeneity was observed (I2 = 0%). Locally advanced rectal cancer patients with pathological complete response who underwent adjuvant chemotherapy exhibited a higher 5-year overall survival rate compared to those who did not receive adjuvant chemotherapy (OR = 1.605, 95% CI 1.183-2.177, P = 0.002). However, the analysis also revealed that postoperative ACT did not lead to improvements in disease-free survival and recurrence-free survival within the same patient population. Subgroup analysis indicated that pathological complete response patients with clinical stage T3/T4, lymph node positivity, and younger than 70 years of age may benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy in terms of overall survival. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this meta-analysis suggest that adjuvant chemotherapy has a beneficial effect on improving overall survival among rectal cancer patients with pathological complete response. However, no such association was observed in terms of disease-free survival and recurrence-free survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianguo Yang
- Department of General Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 401120, China
| | - Qican Deng
- Department of General Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 401120, China
| | - Yong Cheng
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400016, China
| | - Zhongxue Fu
- Department of General Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 401120, China
| | - Xin Wu
- Department of General Surgery, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 401120, China.
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Baloyiannis I, Perivoliotis K, Vederaki S, Koukoulis G, Symeonidis D, Tzovaras G. Current evidence regarding the role of adjuvant chemotherapy in rectal cancer patients with pathologic complete response after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Colorectal Dis 2021; 36:1395-1406. [PMID: 33772323 DOI: 10.1007/s00384-021-03915-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE The aim of this meta-analysis was to investigate the role of adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) in rectal cancer patients with pathologic complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and curative resection. METHODS This study was completed in accordance to the PRISMA guidelines and the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. The electronic scholar databases (Medline, Web of Science, Scopus) were screened for eligible articles. The level of evidence (LoE) was assessed using the GRADE methodology. RESULTS Overall, 23 non-randomized studies and 17,406 patients were included in the present meta-analysis. Pooled comparisons confirmed that AC improved overall survival (HR: 0.68, p=0.0003), but not disease-free (p=0.22) and recurrence-free survival (p=0.39). However, the LoE for all outcomes was characterized as "very low," due to the absence of RCTs. CONCLUSIONS Considering the study limitations and the lack of randomized studies, further high-quality RCTs are required to confirm the findings of our study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ioannis Baloyiannis
- Department of Surgery, University Hospital of Larissa, Mezourlo, 41110, Larissa, Greece
| | | | - Styliani Vederaki
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, Mezourlo, 41110, Larissa, Greece
| | - Georgios Koukoulis
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, Mezourlo, 41110, Larissa, Greece
- Department of Surgery, Koutlimbaneio and Triantafylleio General Hospital of Larissa, Larissa, Greece
| | - Dimitrios Symeonidis
- Department of Surgery, University Hospital of Larissa, Mezourlo, 41110, Larissa, Greece
| | - George Tzovaras
- Department of Surgery, University Hospital of Larissa, Mezourlo, 41110, Larissa, Greece
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