Postoperative chemoradiotherapy with capecitabine and oxaliplatin vs.capecitabine for pathological stage N2 rectal cancer

Objective:Several studies have been conducted on the effects and toxicity of adding oxaliplatin to fluorouracilbased or capecitabine-based chemoradiotherapy(CRT)regimens as significantly increasing the toxic response without benefit to survival.In this study,we further explored the role of these two postoperative CRT regimens in patients with pathological stage N2 rectal cancer.Methods:This study was a subgroup analysis of a randomized clinical trial.A total of 180 patients with pathological stage N2 rectal cancer were eligible,85 received capecitabine with radiotherapy(RT),and 95 received capecitabine and oxaliplatin with RT.Patients in both groups received adjuvant chemotherapy[capecitabine and oxaliplatin(XELOX);or fluorouracil,leucovorin,and oxaliplatin(FOLFOX)]after CRT.Results:At a median follow-up of 59.2[interquartile range(IQR),34.0−96.8]months,the three-year diseasefree survival(DFS)was 53.3%and 64.9%in the control group and the experimental group,respectively[hazard ratio(HR),0.63;95%confidence interval(95%CI),0.41−0.98;P=0.04].There was no significant difference between the groups in overall survival(OS)(HR,0.62;95%CI,0.37−1.05;P=0.07),the incidence of locoregional recurrence(HR,0.62;95%CI,0.24−1.64;P=0.33),the incidence of distant metastasis(HR,0.67;95%CI,0.42−1.06;P=0.09)and grade 3−4 acute toxicities(P=0.78).For patients with survival longer than 3 years,the conditional overall survival(COS)was significantly better in the experimental group(HR,0.39;95%CI,0.16−0.96;P=0.03).Conclusions:Our results indicated that adding oxaliplatin to capecitabine-based postoperative CRT is safe and effective in patients with pathological stage N2 rectal cancer.

Association of overall survival benefit of radiotherapy with progression-free survival after chemotherapy for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma:A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective:To evaluate whether improved progression-free survival(PFS)from radiotherapy(RT)translates into an overall survival(OS)benefit for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma(DLBCL).Methods:A systematic literature search identified randomized controlled trials(RCTs)and retrospective studies that compared combined-modality therapy(CMT)with chemotherapy(CT)alone.Weighted regression analyses were used to estimate the correlation between OS and PFS benefits.Cohen’s kappa statistic assessed the consis-tency between DLBCL risk-models and PFS patterns.Furthermore,the benefit trend of RT was analyzed by fitting a linear regression model to the pooled hazard ratio(HR)according to the PFS patterns.Results:For both 7 RCTs and 52 retrospective studies,correlations were found between PFS HR(HRPFS)and OS HR(HROS)at trial level(r=0.639-0.876),and between PFS and OS rates at treatment-arm level,regardless of CT regimens(r=0.882-0.964).Incorporating RT into CT increased about 18%of PFS,and revealed a different OS benefit profile.Patients were stratified into four CT-generated PFS patterns(>80%,>60-80%,>40-60%,and≤40%),which was consistent with risk-stratified subgroups(kappa>0.6).Absolute gain in OS from RT ranged from≤5%at PFS>80%to about 21%at PFS≤40%,with pooled HROS from 0.70(95%CI,0.51-0.97)to 0.48(95%CI,0.36-0.63)after rituximab-based CT.The OS benefit of RT was predominant in intermediate-and high-risk patients with PFS≤80%.Conclusion:We demonstrated a varied OS benefit profile of RT to inform treatment decisions and clinical trial design.

Down-staging depth score could be a survival predictor for locally advanced gastric cancer patients after preoperative chemoradiotherapy

Objective:The predictive effect of preoperative chemoradiotherapy(CRT)is low and difficult in guiding individualized treatment.We examined a surrogate endpoint for long-term outcomes in locally advanced gastric cancer patients after preoperative CRT.Methods:From April 2012 to April 2019,95 patients with locally advanced gastric cancer who received preoperative concurrent CRT and who were enrolled in three prospective studies were included.All patients were stage T_(3/4) N_(+).Local control,distant metastasis-free survival(DMFS),disease-free survival(DFS)and overall survival(OS)were evaluated.Clinicopathological factors related to long-term prognosis were analyzed using univariate and multivariate analyses.The down-staging depth score(DDS),which is a novel method of evaluating CRT response,was used to predict long-term outcomes.Results:The median follow-up period for survivors was 30 months.The area under the curve(AUC)of the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve predicted by the DDS was 0.728,which was better than the pathological complete response(pCR),histological response and ypN0.Decision curve analysis further affirmed that DDS had the largest net benefit.The DDS cut-off value was 4.pCR and ypN0 were associated with OS(P=0.026 and 0.049).Surgery and DDS are correlated with DMFS,DFS and OS(surgery:P=0.001,<0.001 and<0.001,respectively;and DDS:P=0.009,0.013 and 0.032,respectively).Multivariate analysis showed that DDS was an independent prognostic factor of DFS(P=0.021).Conclusions:DDS is a simple,short-term indicator that was a better surrogate endpoint than pCR,histological response and ypN0 for DFS.

Analysis of the Prognosis for Patients with Stage T3N0-1M0 Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Treated by Chemotherapy Combined with Radiotherapy

OBJECTIVE To investigate the relationship between the therapeutic modality and prognostic factors for the patients with T3N0-1M0 nasopharyngeal carcinoma. METHODS The clinical data from 127 cases of T3N0-1M0 nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with initial treatment, during the period from January 4th, 2000 to November 12th, 2001, were retrospectively analyzed. The cases were divided into Group A with simple radiotherapy (90) and Group B with the radiation therapy combined with chemotherapy (37), based on various patients' conditions. In group B, inductive chemotherapy was conducted for 18 cases, inductive chemotherapy plus homochronous chemotherapy for 5 and homochronous chemotherapy for 14. RESULTS The 5-year overall survival (OS) in the groups A and B was 73.4% and 72.3% respectively (P>0.05); the cancer-correlated survival (CCS) in the 2 groups was 76.4% and 72.3% respectively (P>0.05); the disease-free survival (DFS) in group A and B was 65.5% and 71.7% respectively (P<0.05). A multiple analysis showed that the mode of radiation therapy plus chemotherapy was a favorable independent impact factor for DFS. CONCLUSION Chemotherapy plus radiotherapy can improve the DFS of patients with T3N0-1M0 nasopharyngeal carcinoma, but fails to prolong the survival time of the patients. The modality of chemotherapy plus radiotherapy is not the necessary choice in treatment of patients with T3N0-1M0 nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Adaptive ultra-hypofractionated whole-pelvic radiotherapy in high-risk and very high-risk prostate cancer on 1.5-Tesla MR-Linac:Estimated delivered dose and early toxicity results

Background: Magnetic resonance(MR)-guided ultra-hypofractionated radiotherapy with whole-pelvic irradiation(UHF-WPRT)is a novel approach to radiotherapy for patients with high-risk(HR)and very high-risk(VHR)prostate cancer(PCa).However,the inherent complexity of adaptive UHF-WPRT might inevitably result in longer on-couch time.We aimed to estimate the delivered dose,study the feasibility and safety of adaptive UHF-WPRT on a 1.5-Tesla MR-Linac.Methods: Ten patients with clinical stage T3a-4N0-1M0-1c PCa,who consecutively received UHF-WPRT,were enrolled prospectively.The contours of the target and organ-at-risks on the position verification-MR(PV-MR),beam-on 3D-MR(Bn-MR),and post-MR(after radiotherapy delivery)were derived from the pre-MR data by deformable image registration.The physician then manually adjusted them,and dose recalculation was performed accordingly.GraphPad Prism 9(GraphPad Prism Software Inc.)was utilized for conducting statistical analyses.Results: In total,we collected 188 MR scans(50 pre-MR,50 PV-MR,44 Bn-MR,and 44 post-MR scans).With median 59 min,the mean prostate clinical target volume(CTV)-V_(100%)was 98.59%±2.74%,and the mean pelvic CTVp-V_(100%)relative percentages of all scans was 99.60%±1.18%.The median V29 Gy change in the rectal wall was−2%(−18%to 20%).With a median follow-up of 9 months,no patient had acute Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events(CTCAE)grade 2 or more severe genitourinary(GU)or gastrointestinal(GI)toxicities(0%).Conclusion: UHF-RT to the prostate and the whole pelvis with concomitant boost to positive nodes using an Adapt-To-Shape(ATS)workflow was technically feasible for patients with HR and VHR PCa,presenting only mild GU and GI toxicities.The estimated target dose during the beam-on phase was clinically acceptable based on the 3D-MR-based dosimetry analysis.Clinical trial registration Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2000033382.

Clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of Chinese diffuse large B-cell lymphoma patients in the era of rituximab(2005–2018)

Background Rituximab combined with cyclophosphamide,doxorubicin hydrochloride,vincristine,and prednisone(R-CHOP)regimen has improved the survival of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma(DLBCL)patients worldwide,compared with CHOP alone.Several limitations were seen in previous studies of Chinese DLBCL patients treated with R-CHOP or R-CHOP-like regimens.This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of Chinese DLBCL patients treated with the standard first-line treatment.Methods Clinical data were collected from DLBCL patients who received frontline R-CHOP or R-CHOP-like regimens at the Cancer Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences&Peking Union Medical College(CHCAMS)between January 1,2005,and December 31,2018.The treatment outcomes were compared with those of patients diagnosed with DLBCL between 2004 and 2017 and who received immunochemotherapy from the United States Surveillance,Epidemiology,and End Results(SEER)database.Survival rates were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test.Multivariate analysis of progression-free survival(PFS)and overall survival(OS)was performed using Cox proportional hazard regression.Results Overall,1084 patients from the CHCAMS and 4013 patients from the SEER database were included in the study.As of April 30,2022,the median follow-up period for the CHCAMS group was 87.3(range:0.5-195.4)months.For the CHCAMS group,the 5-year PFS and OS rates were 61.7%(95%confidence interval[CI]:58.8-64.7%)and 70.6%(95%CI:67.8-73.4%),respectively.For the SEER group,the 5-year OS rate was 66.5%(95%CI:65.0-68.0%),which was inferior to that of the CHCAMS group(P<0.001).After adjusting for clinical factors and treatment,no significant difference was observed in the OS between the CHCAMS and SEER groups(P=0.867).In the CHCAMS group,multivariate analysis showed that an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score≥2,presence of B symptoms,Ann Arbor stage III-IV,elevated serumβ2-microglobulin levels,and bulky mass were independent adverse prognostic factors affecting PFS and OS(P<0.05).Additionally,patients aged over 60 years,elevated lactate dehydrogenase levels,and more than two extranodal sites were independent adverse prognostic factors for OS(P<0.05).Local radiotherapy was significantly associated with better PFS(P<0.001)and OS(P=0.001).Conclusion After adjusting for clinical and treatment-related factors,no significant difference was observed in the 5-year OS rate between Chinese DLBCL patients treated with standard first-line treatment and those from the SEER database.