[A case of advanced gastric cancer effectively treated with weekly paclitaxel as neoadjuvant chemotherapy]

We report a patient with advanced gastric cancer responding remarkably to neoadjuvant chemotherapy consisting of weekly paclitaxel. The patient was a 50-year-old male who had large advanced gastric cancer, suspected of invasion to the duodenum and pancreas and severe lymph node metastasis [cT4 (pancreas), cN2, cH0, cP0, cM0, cStage IV]. He was treated with weekly paclitaxel as neoadjuvant chemotherapy. According to gastroscope and CT findings, a significant tumor reduction was obtained after 3 courses. Therefore, distal gastrectomy with D2 nodal dissection were performed. The histological diagnosis was pT2, pN2, pStage IIIA, and the histological effect of the main tumor was judged to be Grade 2. The patient has now been in good health without recurrence for 3 years after surgery. This case suggests that neoadjuvant chemotherapy with weekly paclitaxel is a potentially effective regimen for advanced gastric cancer.