The escalating prevalence of gastrointestinal cancers underscores the urgency for transformative approaches.Current treatment costs amount to billions of dollars annually,combined with the risks and comorbidities asso...The escalating prevalence of gastrointestinal cancers underscores the urgency for transformative approaches.Current treatment costs amount to billions of dollars annually,combined with the risks and comorbidities associated with invasive surgery.This highlights the importance of less invasive alternatives with organ preservation being a central aspect of the treatment paradigm.The current standard of care typically involves neoadjuvant systemic therapy followed by surgical resection.There is a growing interest in organ preservation approaches by way of minimizing extensive surgical resections.Endoscopic ablation has proven to be useful in precursor lesions,as well as in palliative cases of unrese-ctable disease.More recently,there has been an increase in reports on the utility of adjunct endoscopic ablative techniques for downstaging disease as well as contributing to non-surgical complete clinical response.This expansive field within endoscopic oncology holds great potential for advancing patient care.By addressing challenges,fostering collaboration,and embracing technological advancements,the gastrointestinal cancer treatment paradigm can shift towards a more sustainable and patient-centric future emphasizing organ and function preservation.This editorial examines the evolving landscape of endoscopic ablation strategies,emphasizing their potential to improve patient outcomes.We briefly review current applications of endoscopic ablation in the esophagus,stomach,duodenum,pancreas,bile ducts,and colon.展开更多
According to the main international clinical guidelines,the recommended treatment for locally-advanced rectal cancer is neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery.However,doubts have been raised about the appro...According to the main international clinical guidelines,the recommended treatment for locally-advanced rectal cancer is neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery.However,doubts have been raised about the appropriate definition of clinical complete response(cCR)after neoadjuvant therapy and the role of surgery in patients who achieve a cCR.Surgical resection is associated with significant morbidity and decreased quality of life(QoL),which is especially relevant given the favourable prognosis in this patient subset. Accordingly, therehas been a growing interest in alternative approaches with less morbidity,including the organ-preserving watch and wait strategy, in which surgery isomitted in patients who have achieved a cCR. These patients are managed with aspecific follow-up protocol to ensure adequate cancer control, including the earlyidentification of recurrent disease. However, there are several open questionsabout this strategy, including patient selection, the clinical and radiologicalcriteria to accurately determine cCR, the duration of neoadjuvant treatment, therole of dose intensification (chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy), optimal followupprotocols, and the future perspectives of this approach. In the present review,we summarize the available evidence on the watch and wait strategy in thisclinical scenario, including ongoing clinical trials, QoL in these patients, and thecontroversies surrounding this treatment approach.展开更多
文摘The escalating prevalence of gastrointestinal cancers underscores the urgency for transformative approaches.Current treatment costs amount to billions of dollars annually,combined with the risks and comorbidities associated with invasive surgery.This highlights the importance of less invasive alternatives with organ preservation being a central aspect of the treatment paradigm.The current standard of care typically involves neoadjuvant systemic therapy followed by surgical resection.There is a growing interest in organ preservation approaches by way of minimizing extensive surgical resections.Endoscopic ablation has proven to be useful in precursor lesions,as well as in palliative cases of unrese-ctable disease.More recently,there has been an increase in reports on the utility of adjunct endoscopic ablative techniques for downstaging disease as well as contributing to non-surgical complete clinical response.This expansive field within endoscopic oncology holds great potential for advancing patient care.By addressing challenges,fostering collaboration,and embracing technological advancements,the gastrointestinal cancer treatment paradigm can shift towards a more sustainable and patient-centric future emphasizing organ and function preservation.This editorial examines the evolving landscape of endoscopic ablation strategies,emphasizing their potential to improve patient outcomes.We briefly review current applications of endoscopic ablation in the esophagus,stomach,duodenum,pancreas,bile ducts,and colon.
文摘According to the main international clinical guidelines,the recommended treatment for locally-advanced rectal cancer is neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery.However,doubts have been raised about the appropriate definition of clinical complete response(cCR)after neoadjuvant therapy and the role of surgery in patients who achieve a cCR.Surgical resection is associated with significant morbidity and decreased quality of life(QoL),which is especially relevant given the favourable prognosis in this patient subset. Accordingly, therehas been a growing interest in alternative approaches with less morbidity,including the organ-preserving watch and wait strategy, in which surgery isomitted in patients who have achieved a cCR. These patients are managed with aspecific follow-up protocol to ensure adequate cancer control, including the earlyidentification of recurrent disease. However, there are several open questionsabout this strategy, including patient selection, the clinical and radiologicalcriteria to accurately determine cCR, the duration of neoadjuvant treatment, therole of dose intensification (chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy), optimal followupprotocols, and the future perspectives of this approach. In the present review,we summarize the available evidence on the watch and wait strategy in thisclinical scenario, including ongoing clinical trials, QoL in these patients, and thecontroversies surrounding this treatment approach.