Risk Factors for Muscle Loss During Neoadjuvant Therapy for Esophageal Cancer

In patients with esophageal cancer, muscle loss induced by neoadjuvant therapy before esophagectomy is correlated with poor prognosis. However, little is known about the causes of muscle loss. Thus, the purpose of this retrospective study was to clarify the risk factors for muscle loss during neoadjuvant therapy.

Patients with esophageal cancer who underwent neoadjuvant therapy before esophagectomy between 2009 and 2020 were investigated (n=132). The patients received either cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil (CF); docetaxel, cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil (DCF); or CF with radiotherapy as neoadjuvant therapy. The cross-sectional areas of the bilateral psoas muscles were measured at the level of the third lumbar vertebra using CT, before and after neoadjuvant therapy, and psoas muscle loss was calculated. The patients were divided into the high muscle loss group with 5% or more muscle loss or the low muscle loss group with less than 5% loss. Correlations between muscle loss and clinical factors were evaluated.

The median value of psoas muscle loss was 5.30%. Psoas muscle loss was significantly correlated with a poor 3-year overall survival rate (p=0.034). Multivariate analysis showed that the independent factors associated with muscle loss were age ≥70 years [odds ratio (OR)=2.43, p=0.022], treatment with DCF (OR=3.47, p=0.034), and a poor response to neoadjuvant therapy (OR=2.68, p=0.028).

A regimen of DCF was a major trigger of muscle loss during neoadjuvant therapy.