[Short and long-term outcomes of neoadjuvant chemotherapy for locally advanced esophageal carcinoma]

This study was to compare the 5-year survival rate, the surgical resection rate, the post-operative complications and mortality of patients who underwent surgical resection for carcinoma of esophagus with or without neoadjuvant chemotherapy. To evaluate neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the treatment of esophageal carcinoma.

Forty-two patients with locally advanced esophageal carcinoma undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgical resection (CS group), and 75 patients with the same phase undergoing surgical resection alone (S group) from August 2003 to March 2009 in Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center were reviewed. The 5-year survival rate, the surgical resection rate, the post-operative complications and mortality between the two groups were analyzed.

Forty-two patients after neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the complete response rate was 11.9%, the partial response was 47.6%, the total clinical response rate was 59.5%. The surgical resection rate of CS group and S group were 100% and 89.5% (P = 0.029). There was no statistically difference in the post-operative complications and mortality between two groups. The overall 5-year survival for CS group and S group were 31.7% and 26.4%, respectively (P = 0.266). In the subgroup analysis, the 5-year survival of patients with clinical response was significant higher than S group (P = 0.010).

The neoadjuvant chemotherapy can improve surgical resection rate and long-term survival of esophageal carcinoma patients with clinical response without increasing the post-operative complications and mortality.