Neoadjuvant short-course radiotherapy followed by camrelizumab and chemotherapy in locally advanced rectal cancer (UNION): early outcomes of a multicenter randomized phase III trial.

BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant short-course radiotherapy (SCRT) followed by CAPOX and camrelizumab (a programmed cell death protein 1 monoclonal antibody) has shown potential clinical activity for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) in a phase II trial. This study aimed to further confirm the efficacy and safety of SCRT followed by CAPOX and camrelizumab compared to long-course chemoradiotherapy (LCRT) followed by CAPOX alone as neoadjuvant treatment for LARC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this randomized, phase III trial, patients with T3-4/N+ rectal adenocarcinoma were randomly assigned (1 : 1) to receive SCRT or long-course chemoradiotherapy (LCRT), followed by two cycles of camrelizumab and CAPOX or CAPOX alone, respectively. After surgery, each arm underwent either six cycles of camrelizumab and CAPOX, followed by up to 17 doses of camrelizumab, or six cycles of CAPOX. The primary endpoint was pathological complete response (pCR) rate (ypT0N0) assessed by a blinded independent review committee. Key secondary endpoints tested hierarchically were 3-year event-free survival (EFS) rate and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Between July 2021 and March 2023, the intention-to-treat population comprised 113 patients in the experimental arm and 118 patients in the control arm, with surgery carried out in 92% and 83.9%, respectively. At data cut-off (11 July 2023), the pCR rates were 39.8% [95% confidence interval (CI) 30.7% to 49.5%] in the experimental arm compared to 15.3% (95% CI 9.3% to 23.0%) in the control arm (difference, 24.6%; odds ratio, 3.7; 95% CI 2.0-6.9; P < 0.001). In each arm, surgical complication rates were 40.0% and 40.8%, and grade ≥3 treatment-related adverse events were 29.2% and 27.2%. Three-year EFS rate and OS continue to mature. CONCLUSIONS: In LARC patients, neoadjuvant SCRT followed by camrelizumab plus CAPOX demonstrated a significantly higher pCR rate than LCRT followed by CAPOX, with a well-tolerated safety profile. SCRT followed by camrelizumab and chemotherapy can be recommended as a neoadjuvant treatment modality for these patients.

Organ preservation after neoadjuvant long-course chemoradiotherapy versus short-course radiotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Potential differences in organ preservation between total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) regimens integrating long-course chemoradiotherapy (LCCRT) and short-course radiotherapy (SCRT) in rectal cancer remain undefined. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This natural experiment arose from a policy change in response to the COVID-19 pandemic during which our institution switched from uniformly treating patients with LCCRT to mandating that all patients be treated with SCRT. Our study includes 323 locally advanced rectal adenocarcinoma patients treated with LCCRT-based or SCRT-based TNT from January 2018 to January 2021. Patients who achieved clinical complete response were offered organ preservation with watch-and-wait (WW) management. The primary outcome was 2-year organ preservation. Additional outcomes included local regrowth, distant recurrence, disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Patient and tumor characteristics were similar between LCCRT (n = 247) and SCRT (n = 76) cohorts. Median follow-up was 31 months. Similar clinical complete response rates were observed following LCCRT and SCRT (44.5% versus 43.4%). Two-year organ preservation was 40% [95% confidence interval (CI) 34% to 46%] and 31% (95% CI 22% to 44%) among all patients treated with LCCRT and SCRT, respectively. In patients managed with WW, LCCRT resulted in higher 2-year organ preservation (89% LCCRT, 95% CI 83% to 95% versus 70% SCRT, 95% CI 55% to 90%; P = 0.005) and lower 2-year local regrowth (19% LCCRT, 95% CI 11% to 26% versus 36% SCRT, 95% CI 16% to 52%; P = 0.072) compared with SCRT. The 2-year distant recurrence (10% versus 6%), DFS (90% versus 90%), and OS (99% versus 100%) were similar between WW patients treated with LCCRT and SCRT, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: While WW eligibility was similar between cohorts, WW patients treated with LCCRT had higher 2-year organ preservation and lower local regrowth than those treated with SCRT, yet similar DFS and OS. These data support induction LCCRT followed by consolidation chemotherapy as the preferred TNT regimen for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer pursuing organ preservation.

The efficacy and safety of short-course radiotherapy followed by sequential chemotherapy and Cadonilimab for locally advanced rectal cancer: a protocol of a phase II study.

BACKGROUND: For patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC), total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT), namely, intensifying preoperative treatment through the integration of radiotherapy and systemic chemotherapy before surgery, was commonly recommended as the standard treatment. However, the risk of distant metastasis at 3 years remained higher than 20%, and the complete response (CR) rate was less than 30%. Several clinical trials had suggested a higher complete response rate when combining single-agent immunotherapy with short-course radiotherapy (SCRT). The CheckMate 142 study had shown encouraging outcomes of dual immunotherapy and seemingly comparable toxicity for CRC compared with single-agent immunotherapy in historical results. Therefore, dual immunotherapy might be more feasible in conjunction with the TNT paradigm of SCRT. We performed a phase II study to investigate whether the addition of a dual immune checkpoint inhibitor bispecific antibody, Cadonilimab, to SCRT combined with chemotherapy might further increase the clinical benefit and prognosis for LARC patients. METHODS: This single-arm, multicenter, prospective, phase II study included patients with pathologically confirmed cT3-T4N0 or cT2-4N + rectal adenocarcinoma with an ECOG performance score of 0 or 1. Bispecific antibody immunotherapy was added to SCRT combined with chemotherapy. Patients enrolled would be treated with SCRT (25 Gy in five fractions over 1 week) for the pelvic cavity, followed by 4 cycles of CAPOX or 6 cycles of mFOLFOX and Cadonilimab. The primary endpoint was the CR rate, which was the ratio of the pathological CR rate plus the clinical CR rate. The secondary endpoints included local-regional control, distant metastasis, disease-free survival, overall survival, toxicity profile, quality of life and functional outcome of the rectum. To detect an increase in the complete remission rate from 21.8% to 40% with 80% power, 50 patients were needed. DISCUSSION: This study would provide evidence on the efficacy and safety of SCRT plus bispecific antibody immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy as neoadjuvant therapy for patients with LARC, which might be used as a candidate potential therapy in the future. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This phase II trial was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, under the identifier NCT05794750.

Preoperative short-course radiotherapy followed by chemotherapy and PD-1 inhibitor administration for locally advanced rectal cancer: A study protocol of a randomized phase II/III trial (STELLAR II study).

AIM: For patients with locally advanced rectal cancer, previous STELLAR studies have shown that a new adjuvant treatment paradigm of short-course radiotherapy followed by neoadjuvant chemotherapy can achieve pathological complete response rates superior to those of standard care; however, the 3-year DFS is inferior to neoadjuvant concurrent radiotherapy. Recent studies have shown that immune checkpoint inhibitors may improve the prognosis of rectal cancer and have good synergy with radiotherapy. Therefore, neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors after a short course of radiotherapy has the potential to further improve complete response rates and prognosis. METHOD: The STELLAR II study is a multicentre, open label, two-arm randomized, phase II/III trial of short-course radiotherapy followed by neoadjuvant chemotherapy concurrent with immunotherapy for locally advanced rectal cancer. A total of 588 patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) will be randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. The experimental group will receive short-course radiotherapy and neoadjuvant chemotherapy in combination with sindilizumab, while the control group will receive short-course radiotherapy and neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Both groups will subsequently receive either total rectal mesenteric resection or a watch & wait (W&W) strategy. The phase II primary endpoint is the complete remission rate, and the secondary endpoints include grade 3-4 adverse events, perioperative complications, R0 resection rate, overall survival, local recurrence rate, distant metastasis rate and quality of life score. A seamless phase II/III randomized controlled design will be used to investigate the effectiveness and safety of the TNT strategy with the addition of immunotherapy. The trial opened, and the first patient was recruited on 31 August 2022. Trial registration number and date of registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05484024, 29 July 2022. DISCUSSION: The STELLAR II trial will prospectively evaluate the efficacy of TNT treatment strategies that incorporate immune checkpoint inhibitors. The trial will yield important information to guide routine management of patients with local advanced rectal cancer.

The impact of short-course hypofractionated radiotherapy on multimodality treatment utilisation, compliance, and outcome in glioblastoma patients: a Danish patterns of care study.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this retrospective registry-based Danish patterns of care study was (1) to evaluate the real-world utilisation of short-course hypofractionated radiotherapy (HFRT) in glioblastoma (GBM) patients over time, and (2) to evaluate the impact of short-course HFRT by assessing trends in multimodality treatment utilisation, compliance, and outcome. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data of all adults with newly diagnosed pathology-confirmed GBM between 2011 and 2019 were extracted from the nationwide Danish Neuro-Oncology Registry. Short-course HFRT was defined as a fraction size of > 2 Gy to a planned dose of > 30 Gy. Patterns of care were assessed. To analyse trends in the assignment to short-course HFRT, and in radiotherapy (RT) compliance, multivariable logistic regression was applied. To analyse trends in survival, multivariable Cox regression was used. RESULTS: In this cohort of 2416 GBM patients, the utilisation of short-course HFRT significantly increased from ca. 10% in 2011 to 33% in recent years. This coincided with the discontinued use of palliative regimens and a decreased use of conventional fractionation. The proportion of patients proceeding to RT remained stable at ca. 85%. The proportion of patients assigned to chemoradiotherapy (CRT) remained stable at ca. 60%; the use of short-course hypofractionated CRT increased with ca. 10%, while the use of conventionally fractionated CRT decreased with ca. 10%. Compliance with conventionally fractionated and short-course HFRT was respective 92% and 93%, and significantly increasing in recent years. In the complete cohort, the median overall survival remained stable at ca. 11 months. Assignment to short-course HFRT was independently associated with shorter survival. CONCLUSION: In Denmark, the use of short-course HFRT significantly increased in recent years. Nonetheless, the overall utilisation of RT and chemotherapy did not increase on a population level. Nor did survival change. In contrast, compliance with both conventionally fractionated RT and short-course HFRT increased.

Effect of short-course radiotherapy followed by oxaliplatin-based consolidation chemotherapy on organ preservation in locally advanced rectal cancer.

PURPOSE: We analyzed the effectiveness, safety, and mid-term oncological outcomes of short-course radiotherapy (SCRT) and oxaliplatin-based consolidation chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated 64 patients with LARC who underwent SCRT and tegafox (tegafur-uracil/leucovorin plus oxaliplatin) or mFOLFOX-6 (5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin) consolidation chemotherapy before surgery between January 2015 and December 2020. Tumor response, patient compliance, toxicity, surgical outcomes, overall survival (OS), and disease-free survival (DFS) were analyzed. RESULTS: Sixty-four patients with a mean age of 58.67 years (44 males) were included; 48 (75%) had tumors within 5 cm of the anal verge. Additionally, 93.8% of the patients underwent at least 2 months of chemotherapy, and three required dose reduction. Grade III toxicity occurred in 2 patients, and 10 had a clinical complete response and opted for non-operative management. One patient experienced tumor progression and underwent further treatment without surgery. Among the 53 patients who underwent surgery, 51 (96.2%) had sphincter preservation, 3 had Clavien-Dindo grade III complications, and no mortality occurred. The complete response rate for the entire cohort was 23.4%. Moreover, 47 patients (74.6%) had a neoadjuvant rectal score of < 16 after treatment. After a median follow-up time of 32.01 months, 6 (9.3%) had local recurrence, and 17 (26.6%) had distant metastasis. The 3-year OS, DFS and stoma-free rates were 89.5%, 65.5%, and 78.1% respectively. CONCLUSION: SCRT followed by oxaliplatin-based consolidation chemotherapy is safe and effective for tumor downstaging in LARC, further improving the sphincter preservation rate.

Patient- and physician-reported radiation-induced toxicity of short-course radiotherapy with a prolonged interval to surgery for rectal cancer.

AIM: A prolonged interval (>4 weeks) between short-course radiotherapy (25 Gy in five fractions) (SCRT-delay) and total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer has been associated with a decreased postoperative complication rate and offers the possibility of organ preservation in the case of a complete tumour response. This prospective cohort study systematically evaluated patient-reported bowel dysfunction and physician-reported radiation-induced toxicity for 8 weeks following SCRT-delay. METHOD: Patients who were referred for SCRT-delay for intermediate risk, oligometastatic or locally advanced rectal cancer were included. Repeated measurements were done for patient-reported bowel dysfunction (measured by the low anterior resection syndrome [LARS] questionnaire and categorized as no, minor or major LARS) and physician-reported radiation-induced toxicity (according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 4.0) before start of treatment (baseline), at completion of SCRT and 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8 weeks thereafter. RESULTS: Fifty-one patients were included; 31 (61%) were men and the median age was 67 years (range 44-91). Patient-reported bowel dysfunction and physician-reported radiation-induced toxicity peaked at weeks 1-2 after completion of SCRT and gradually declined thereafter. Major LARS was reported by 44 patients (92%) at some time during SCRT-delay. Grade 3 radiation-induced toxicity was reported in 17 patients (33%) and concerned predominantly diarrhoea. No Grade 4-5 radiation-induced toxicity occurred. CONCLUSION: During SCRT-delay, almost every patient experiences temporary mild-moderate radiation-induced toxicity and major LARS, but life-threatening toxicity is rare. SCRT-delay is a safe alternative to SCRT-direct surgery that should be proposed when counselling rectal cancer patients on neoadjuvant strategies.

Is short-course radiotherapy and total neoadjuvant therapy the new standard of care in locally advanced rectal cancer? A sensitivity analysis of the RAPIDO clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: The results of the RAPIDO trial have been accepted as evidence in favour of short-course radiotherapy (SC-RT) followed by chemotherapy before total mesorectal excision in high-risk locally advanced rectal cancer. A noteworthy concern is that the RAPIDO trial did not ensure that all patients in the control arm received adjuvant chemotherapy. This may bias statistical estimates in favour of the experimental arm if adjuvant chemotherapy is active in rectal cancer. Moreover, the 5-year update revealed an increase in the risk of local relapse in the experimental arm. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We carried out sensitivity analyses to determine how plausible effects of adjuvant chemotherapy, adjusted by the proportion of patients in the standard arm receiving adjuvant treatment, would have influenced the observed treatment effect estimate of the RAPIDO trial. The most plausible values for the benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy were determined by Bayesian re-analysis of a prior meta-analysis. RESULTS: The meta-analysis suggested that oxaliplatin/fluorouracil-based adjuvant chemotherapy may improve disease-free survival (DFS) in rectal cancer although the signal is weak [hazard ratio (HR) 0.84, 95% credible interval, 0.57-1.15]; probability of benefit (HR <1) was 91.2%. In the sensitivity analysis, the HR for disease-related treatment failure would remain <1, thus favouring total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT), on most occasions, but the null hypothesis would not have been rejected in various credible settings. For the RAPIDO data to be consistent with the null effect, a moderate benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy (HR for DFS between 0.75 and 0.80) and 70%-80% of exposed participants would suffice. CONCLUSION: The decision to make adjuvant chemotherapy optional in the standard arm may have biased the results in favour of the experimental arm, in a scenario in which TNT does not offset the increase in local recurrences after SC-RT.

Short-course radiotherapy combined with CAPOX and Toripalimab for the total neoadjuvant therapy of locally advanced rectal cancer: a randomized, prospective, multicentre, double-arm, phase II trial (TORCH).

BACKGROUND: For patients with locally advanced (T3-4/N +) rectal cancer (LARC), the standard treatment is neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy combined with total mesorectal resection, which greatly decreases local recurrence but does not improve overall survival. For patients who achieve a complete clinical response (cCR) after nCRT, a "Watch & Wait" (W&W) approach can be received to improve quality of life. Currently, total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) has been demonstrated to increase the complete response rate and achieve early control of distant metastasis. Recent studies have shown promising synergistic effects of the combination of immunotherapy (PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies) and radiotherapy. Thus, for LARC patients, the combination of immunotherapy and TNT is likely to further improve the rate of complete response and prognosis. The disparities between induction therapy and consolidation therapy need to be investigated. METHODS: TORCH is a randomized, prospective, multicentre, double-arm, phase II trial of short-course radiotherapy (SCRT) combined with chemotherapy and immunotherapy in LARC. 130 LARC patients will be treated with the TNT approach and assigned to the consolidation arm and induction arm. The consolidation arm will receive SCRT, followed by 6 cycles of capecitabine plus oxaliplatin (CAPOX) and Toripalimab. The induction arm will first receive 2 cycles of CAPOX and Toripalimab, then receive SCRT, followed by 4 cycles of CAPOX and Toripalimab. Both groups will receive curative surgery or the W&W strategy. The primary endpoint is the complete response rate (rate of pCR plus cCR). The secondary endpoints include the grade 3-4 acute adverse effects rate, 3-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate, 3-year local recurrence-free survival (LRFS) rate, 3-year OS rate, rate of surgical complications and quality of life (QoL) scores. The "pick the winner" method is used to investigate the better treatment regimen. The trial was opened on 13th April 2021, and the first patient was recruited on 6th May 2021. DISCUSSION: TORCH will investigate whether SCRT combined with chemotherapy and Toripalimab can achieve better complete response rates, good tolerance and prognosis in LARC patients. This is the first clinical trial to compare the efficacy of induced immunotherapy and consolidative immunotherapy based on the TNT strategy. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Trial Registration Number and Date of Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04518280 , August 15, 2020.

Population-level utilisation of neoadjuvant radiotherapy for the treatment of rectal cancer.

PURPOSE: International clinical guidelines recommend long- or short-course neoadjuvant radiotherapy for locally advanced rectal cancer. This study aims to examine variation in the use of neoadjuvant radiotherapy for rectal cancer and identify patient and hospital factors that underpin this variation. METHODS AND MATERIALS: We conducted a retrospective, consecutive cohort study using statewide hospitalisation and radiotherapy data from New South Wales, Australia, 2013-2018. Included participants had a primary rectal adenocarcinoma and underwent surgical resection. Factors associated with the use or not of any neoadjuvant radiotherapy, and short versus long-course were explored using multilevel logistic regression models. RESULTS: Of the 2912 people included in the study, 43% received neoadjuvant radiotherapy. There was significant variation in the use of neoadjuvant radiotherapy depending on geographic location. Abdominoperineal excision (odds ratio [OR] = 1.87, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.53-2.28) and having surgery in a public hospital (OR = 2.34, 95% CI = 1.92-2.87) were both predictors of use. Among those receiving neoadjuvant radiotherapy, 17% received short-course therapy, with short-course declining over the study period. CONCLUSIONS: The use of neoadjuvant radiotherapy for rectal cancer is highly variable, with differences only partially explained by assessable patient-or hospital-level factors. Understanding neoadjuvant radiotherapy utilisation patterns may assist in identifying barriers and opportunities to improve adherence to clinical guidelines.

Can we Save the rectum by watchful waiting or TransAnal surgery following (chemo)Radiotherapy versus Total mesorectal excision for early REctal Cancer (STAR-TREC)? Protocol for the international, multicentre, rolling phase II/III partially randomized patient preference trial evaluating long-course concurrent chemoradiotherapy versus short-course radiotherapy organ preservation approaches.

AIM: Organ-saving treatment for early-stage rectal cancer can reduce patient-reported side effects compared to standard total mesorectal excision (TME) and preserve quality of life. An optimal strategy for achieving organ preservation and longer-term oncological outcomes are unknown; thus there is a need for high quality trials. METHOD: Can we Save the rectum by watchful waiting or TransAnal surgery following (chemo)Radiotherapy versus Total mesorectal excision for early REctal Cancer (STAR-TREC) is an international three-arm multicentre, partially randomized controlled trial incorporating an external pilot. In phase III, patients with cT1-3b N0 tumours, ≤40 mm in diameter, who prefer organ preservation are randomized 1:1 between mesorectal long-course chemoradiation versus mesorectal short-course radiotherapy, with selective transanal microsurgery. Patients preferring radical surgery receive TME. STAR-TREC aims to recruit 380 patients to organ preservation and 120 to TME surgery. The primary outcome is the rate of organ preservation at 30 months. Secondary clinician-reported outcomes include acute treatment-related toxicity, rate of non-operative management, non-regrowth pelvic tumour control at 36 months, non-regrowth disease-free survival at 36 months and overall survival at 60 months, and patient-reported toxicity, health-related quality of life at baseline, 12 and 24 months. Exploratory biomarker research uses circulating tumour DNA to predict response and relapse. DISCUSSION: STAR-TREC will prospectively evaluate contrasting therapeutic strategies and implement new measures including a smaller mesorectal target volume, two-step response assessment and non-operative management for complete response. The trial will yield important information to guide routine management of patients with early-stage rectal cancer.

A randomized phase III study of short-course radiotherapy combined with Temozolomide in elderly patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma; Japan clinical oncology group study JCOG1910 (AgedGlio-PIII).

BACKGROUND: The current standard treatment for elderly patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma is surgery followed by short-course radiotherapy with temozolomide. In recent studies, 40 Gy in 15 fractions vs. 60 Gy in 30 fractions, 34 Gy in 10 fractions vs. 60 Gy in 30 fractions, and 40 Gy in 15 fractions vs. 25 Gy in 5 fractions have been reported as non-inferior. The addition of temozolomide increased the survival benefit of radiotherapy with 40 Gy in 15 fractions. However, the optimal regimen for radiotherapy plus concomitant temozolomide remains unresolved. METHODS: This multi-institutional randomized phase III trial was commenced to confirm the non-inferiority of radiotherapy comprising 25 Gy in 5 fractions with concomitant (150 mg/m2/day, 5 days) and adjuvant temozolomide over 40 Gy in 15 fractions with concomitant (75 mg/m2/day, every day from first to last day of radiation) and adjuvant temozolomide in terms of overall survival (OS) in elderly patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma. A total of 270 patients will be accrued from 51 Japanese institutions in 4 years and follow-up will last 2 years. Patients 71 years of age or older, or 71-75 years old with resection of less than 90% of the contrast-enhanced region, will be registered and randomly assigned to each group with 1:1 allocation. The primary endpoint is OS, and the secondary endpoints are progression-free survival, frequency of adverse events, proportion of Karnofsky performance status preservation, and proportion of health-related quality of life preservation. The Japan Clinical Oncology Group Protocol Review Committee approved this study protocol in April 2020. Ethics approval was granted by the National Cancer Center Hospital Certified Review Board. Patient enrollment began in August 2020. DISCUSSION: If the primary endpoint is met, short-course radiotherapy comprising 25 Gy in 5 fractions with concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide will be a standard of care for elderly patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registry number: jRCTs031200099 . Date of Registration: 27/Aug/2020. Date of First Participant Enrollment: 4/Sep/2020.

Initial experience of preoperative short-course radiotherapy followed by oxaliplatin-based consolidation chemotherapy for locally advanced rectal cancer.

PURPOSE: We analyzed the safety and feasibility of preoperative short-course radiotherapy (SCRT) followed by consolidation chemotherapy for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). METHODS: From April 2018 to May 2019, 19 patients with LARC were treated with SCRT followed by three cycles of consolidation chemotherapy with leucovorin, fluorouracil, and oxaliplatin (FOLFOX6) before surgery. Adjuvant chemotherapy relied on oxaliplatin. Tumor response, patient compliance, and toxicities were analyzed. RESULTS: The median age was 60 years (range 44-71), and 16 of the patients were male. The median tumor height was 5 cm (range 0-9) from anal verge. All patients received a total dose of 25 Gy in five fractions. The number of cycles of FOLFOX6 before surgery was three in 17, four in one, five in one. Five patients required dose reductions in consolidation chemotherapy. The median interval between initiation of SCRT and surgery was 10.6 weeks (range 8.6-16.4). A pathologic complete response was seen in two patients (11%). Grade III toxicities to the preoperative treatment were seen in five patients (26%): diarrhea in two, a decreased white blood cell count in one, and anemia in two. Postoperative complications arising within 30 days developed in five patients (26%). During the median follow-up period of 20.4 months, there was no tumor recurrence. CONCLUSION: Preoperative SCRT followed by oxaliplatin-based consolidation chemotherapy showed acceptable toxicity and feasibility in patients with LARC. Prospective randomized trials are warranted to verify the efficacy and safety of this treatment strategy compared with conventional long-course concurrent chemoradiotherapy.

Preoperative short-course radiotherapy (5 × 5 Gy) with delayed surgery versus preoperative long-course radiotherapy for locally resectable rectal cancer: a meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: Preoperative short-course radiotherapy (PSRT) and preoperative long-course radiotherapy (PLRT) are standard treatment regimens for locally advanced rectal cancer. However, whether the efficacy and safety of PSRT with delayed surgery (more than 4 weeks) are superior to those of PLRT remains unresolved and was explored in this meta-analysis. METHODS: Studies published in PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases were systematically searched. RevMan 5.3 was used to calculate pooled hazard ratios (HR) and relative risk (RR). RESULTS: Seven studies including 4973 patients were identified in the meta-analysis. Pooled statistics showed that there was no statistically significant difference in overall survival (HR = 1.30, 95% CI 0.58-2.89, P = 0.52) or disease-free survival (HR = 1.10, 95% CI 0.73-1.66, P = 0.64) between the preoperative short-course and long-course radiotherapy groups. Moreover, pathological complete remission, early postoperative complications, treatment-related grade 3/4 toxicity, local recurrence, and distant metastasis were similar between the two groups. Interestingly, a subgroup analysis revealed that preoperative short-course radiotherapy without adjuvant chemotherapy not only resulted in lower treatment-related grade 3/4 toxicity than the long-course radiotherapy group (RR = 0.19, 95% CI 0.08-0.48, P < 0.01) but also resulted in significantly lower overall survival and pathological complete remission (P = 0.02, P < 0.01, respectively). Disappointingly, pooled statistics observed few advantages over long-course radiotherapy in short-course radiotherapy with the adjuvant chemotherapy subgroup. CONCLUSIONS: PSRT with delayed surgery was as effective as PLRT for the management of locally resectable rectal cancer. However, not adding additional chemotherapy to PSRT not only significantly decreased grade 3/4 toxicity but also decreased pathological complete remission and overall survival. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The protocol for this meta-analysis was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (CRD42019133641).

Is there a need for neoadjuvant short-course radiotherapy in T3 rectal cancer with positive lymph node involvement? A single-center retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant short-course radiotherapy is used to reduce local recurrences in stage III rectal cancer. Radiotherapy is not harmless, and meticulous total mesorectal excision surgery alone has been reported to result in low local recurrence rate in favorable stage III tumors. The aim was to evaluate the effect of short-course (5 × 5 Gy) radiotherapy on the local recurrence risk in patients with pT3N1-2 rectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective study with 151 consecutive pT3N1-2M0 rectal cancer patients operated on at Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland, during January 2005 to June 2014. Short-course radiotherapy was given to 94 patients, and 57 patients were operated on without neoadjuvant radiotherapy. The main outcome measurement was the effect of radiotherapy on local recurrence. Also, the risk factors for local recurrence were analyzed. RESULTS: Local recurrence occurred in a total 17 of 151 (11.3%) patients, 8 of 57 (14.0%) in surgery only group compared with 9 of 94 (9.6%) in radiotherapy plus surgery group (p = 0.44). In univariate Cox regression analysis, the risk factors for local recurrence were tumor location under 6 cm from the anal verge (p = 0.01), involved lateral margin (p < 0.001), tumor perforation (p < 0.001), and mucinous histology (p = 0.006). In multivariate analysis, risk factors were tumor location under 6 cm from anal verge (p = 0.03) and involved lateral margin (p = 0.002). CONCLUSION: Neoadjuvant short-course radiotherapy did not affect the local recurrence risk of pT3N1-2M0 rectal cancer. Further studies with larger patient number are needed to evaluate the role of short-course radiotherapy in different T3 subgroups (3a-c) as well as in N1 and N2 cancers in separate.

Neoadjuvant long-course chemoradiation remains strongly favored over short-course radiotherapy by radiation oncologists in the United States.

BACKGROUND: Short-course radiotherapy (SC-RT) and long-course chemoradiotherapy (LC-CRT) are accepted neoadjuvant treatments of rectal cancer. In the current study, the authors surveyed US radiation oncologists to assess practice patterns and attitudes regarding SC-RT and LC-CRT for patients with rectal cancer. METHODS: The authors distributed a survey to 1701 radiation oncologists regarding treatment of neoadjuvant rectal cancer. Respondents were asked questions regarding the number of patients with rectal cancer treated, preference for SC-RT versus LC-CRT, and factors influencing regimen choice. RESULTS: Of 1659 contactable physicians, 182 responses (11%) were received. Approximately 83% treated at least 5 patients with rectal cancer annually. The majority of responding radiation oncologists (96%) preferred neoadjuvant LC-CRT for the treatment of patients with locally advanced rectal cancer and 44% never used SC-RT. Among radiation oncologists using SC-RT, respondents indicated they would not recommend this regimen for patients with low (74%) or bulky tumors (70%) and/or concern for a positive circumferential surgical resection margin (69%). The most frequent reasons for not offering SC-RT were insufficient downstaging for sphincter preservation (53%) and a desire for longer follow-up (45%). Many radiation oncologists indicated they would prescribe SC-RT for patients not receiving chemotherapy (62%) or patients with a geographic barrier to receiving LC-CRT (82%). Patient comorbidities appeared to influence regimen preferences for 79% of respondents. Approximately 20% of respondents indicated that altered oncology care reimbursement using capitated payment by diagnosis would impact their consideration of SC-RT. CONCLUSIONS: US radiation oncologists rarely use neoadjuvant SC-RT despite 3 randomized controlled trials demonstrating no significant differences in outcome compared with LC-CRT. Further research is necessary to determine whether longer follow-up coupled with the benefits of lower cost, increased patient convenience, and lower acute toxicity will increase the adoption of SC-RT by radiation oncologists in the United States. Cancer 2017;123:1434-1441. © 2016 American Cancer Society.

Neoadjuvant Treatment for Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer: New Concepts in Clinical Trial Design.

OPINION STATEMENT: Treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer has evolved from surgery alone to surgery plus adjuvant therapy. Preoperative 5-fluorouracil- or capecitabine-based chemoradiation with standard fractionated radiation, surgery utilizing total mesorectal excision, and further chemotherapy has become the standard of care in the USA. Preoperative adjuvant chemoradiation treatment sequencing has allowed for decreased toxicity, more sphincter-sparing surgery, and improved local control rates as compared to delivering the chemoradiation postoperatively. Yet, given the heterogeneity of locally advanced disease, some patients may be over-treated with this approach, leading to unnecessary toxicity and costs, while others may have a propensity to develop distant metastases and may benefit from intensified therapy. Therefore, the trend in modern clinical trial design has been to individualize therapy. As such, current studies are examining shortening the duration of radiation, omitting preoperative chemoradiation in patients who have a robust response to induction chemotherapy alone, omitting or delaying surgery in patients who have a clinical complete response to preoperative chemoradiation, and completing all of the adjuvant treatment prior to surgery.

Short-course preoperative radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy, delayed surgery and local hyperthermia for rectal cancer: a phase II study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of short-course radiotherapy with oral capecitabine, hyperthermia and delayed surgery for neoadjuvant treatment of rectal cancer. METHODS: Patients with clinically staged T2-3N0-2M0 primary rectal cancer were included. All patients received short-course 25 Gy in 5 Gy fractions radiotherapy with capecitabine, local hyperthermia and metronidazole. Capecitabine 1000 mg/m2 twice a day was given on days 1-14. Local hyperthermia, 41-45 °C for 60 min, was performed on days 3-5. Metronidazole 10 g/m2 was administered per rectum on days 3 and 5. The time interval to surgery was not less than four weeks after neoadjuvant treatment. The primary end-point was pathological complete response (pCR). Secondary end-points included neoadjuvant treatment toxicity, tumour regression, surgical and oncological outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 81 patients were included in the analysis. Ten (12.3%) patients had grade 3 toxicity and one (1.2%) patient had grade 4 toxicity. Sphincter-sparing surgery was performed for 78 (96.3%) patients. There was no postoperative mortality. Postoperative complications occurred in 11 (13.8%) patients. Sixteen (20%) patients had a pCR. The median follow-up was 40.9 months. There were no local recurrences. Nine (11.1%) patients developed distant metastases. Three-year overall survival was 97% and the three-year disease-free survival was 85%. CONCLUSIONS: Short-course radiotherapy with chemotherapy, radiosensitizers and delayed surgery is a feasible treatment for rectal cancer and may lead to tumour regression rate comparable with long-course chemoradiation.

Electronic patient-reported outcome-based surveillance system to evaluate safety and efficacy of preoperative immunochemotherapy with or without short-term chemoradiation in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ePRO-PICCRT): protocol for a prospective, single-arm, phase II study.

Background: Radiation-associated adverse events (ADEs) in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remain a problem. Recent research has focused on reducing radiation-associated ADEs while maintaining efficacy, particularly through the combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) with chemotherapy. Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) have also emerged as reliable measures for monitoring treatment effectiveness and quality of life (QoL). This trial aims to investigate the feasibility of using patient-reported dysphagia relief to assess pathological response following neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy, as well as the safety and efficacy of neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy combined with short-course radiotherapy for patients with locally advanced ESCC. Methods: This study is designed as a prospective, single-arm, phase II study. Eligible ESCC patients will be invited to participate in this study. All participants will receive paclitaxel (albumin-bound) (260 mg/m2, day 1), carboplatin [area under the curve (AUC) 5; 5 mg/mL/min, day 1] or cisplatin [60 mg/m2, intravenous drip (ivdrip), day 1], and tislelizumab (200 mg, day 1) in the first treatment cycle. Early remission of dysphagia is defined as relief greater than 70% according to the dysphagia symptom score in the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire esophagus-specific questionnaire (EORTC OES-18). The early remission group (Group A) will continue with the same regimen for two treatment cycles. The latent remission group will continue with one treatment cycle followed by neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy combined with short-course radiotherapy (radiotherapy 30 Gy/10 F). The primary objective is the pathological complete response (pCR) rate. Research data collection, storage, and management will be conducted in a web-based Real-World-Data Management Platform (RWDMP). Longitudinal data will be conducted by a linear mixed model with treatment effects, baseline factors influencing the endpoint as fixed effects, and the center as a random effect. Discussion: This study will provide evidence for using patient-reported dysphagia relief to evaluate pathological response after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy in early remission (Group A) and to evaluate the safety and efficacy of combining immunochemotherapy with short-course radiotherapy in latent remission (Group B) among patients with ESCC. Limitations include the single-arm study design, small sample size, and the need for further exploration of the specific mechanism and mediator of early dysphagia remission's effect on immunochemotherapy effectiveness. Trial Registration: This study is registered at Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT05596890).

Contemporary management of rectal cancer.

The management of rectal cancer has undergone significant changes over the past 50 years, and this has been associated with major improvements in overall outcomes and quality of life. From standardization of total mesorectal excision to refinements in radiation delivery and shifting of chemoradiotherapy treatment to favor a neoadjuvant approach, as well as the development of targeted chemotherapeutics, these management strategies have continually aimed to achieve locoregional and systemic control while limiting adverse effects and enhance overall survival. This article highlights evolving aspects of rectal cancer therapy including improved staging modalities, total neoadjuvant therapy, the role of short-course and more selective radiotherapy strategies, as well as organ preservation. We also discuss the evolving role of minimally invasive surgery and comment on lateral pelvic lymph node dissection. Key message: Rectal cancer management is constantly evolving through refinements in radiation timing and delivery, modification of chemoradiotherapy treatment schedules, and increasing utilization of minimally invasive surgical techniques and organ preservation strategies. This manuscript aims to provide a synopsis of recent changes in the management of rectal cancer, highlighting contemporary modifications in neoadjuvant approaches and surgical management to enhance the knowledge of surgeons who care for this challenging population.