Prognostic value of changes in serum carcinoembryonic antigen levels for preoperative chemoradiotherapy response in locally advanced rectal cancer

BACKGROUND Preoperative chemoradiotherapy(CRT)is a standard treatment modality for locally advanced rectal cancer.However,CRT alone cannot improve overall survival.Approximately 20%of patients with CRT-resistant tumors show disease progression.Therefore,predictive factors for treatment response are needed to identify patients who will benefit from CRT.We theorized that the prognosis may vary if patients are classified according to pre-to post-CRT changes in carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA)levels.AIM To identify patients with locally advanced rectal cancer for preoperative chemoradiotherapy based on carcinoembryonic antigen levels.METHODS We retrospectively included locally advanced rectal cancer patients who underwent preoperative CRT and curative resection between 2011 and 2017.Patients were assigned to groups A,B,and C based on pre-and post-CRT serum CEA levels:Both>5;pre>5 and post≤5;and both≤5 ng/mL,respectively.We compared the response to CRT based on changes in serum CEA levels.Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed to determine optimal cutoff for neutrophil–lymphocyte ratio and platelet–lymphocyte ratio.Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the prognostic factors for pathologic complete response(pCR)/good response.RESULTS The cohort comprised 145 patients;of them,27,43,and 65 belonged to groups A,B,and C,respectively,according to changes in serum CEA levels before and after CRT.Pre-(P<0.001)and post-CRT(P<0.001)CEA levels and the ratio of downstaging(P=0.013)were higher in Groups B and C than in Group A.The ratio of pathologic tumor regression grade 0/1 significantly differed among the groups(P=0.003).Group C had the highest number of patients showing pCR(P<0.001).Most patients with pCR showed pre-and post-CRT CEA levels<5 ng/mL(P<0.001,P=0.008).Pre-and post-CRT CEA levels were important risk factors for pCR(OR=18.71;95%CI:4.62–129.51,P<0.001)and good response(OR=5.07;95%CI:1.92–14.83,P=0.002),respectively.Pre-CRT neutrophil–lymphocyte ratio and post-CRT T≥3 stage were also prognostic factors for pCR or good response.CONCLUSION Pre-and post-CRT CEA levels,as well as change in CEA levels,were prognostic markers for treatment response to CRT and may facilitate treatment individualization for rectal cancer.

Predictive value of preoperative routine examination for the prognosis of patients with pT2N0M0 or pT3N0M0 colorectal cancer

BACKGROUND In recent years,the incidence of colorectal cancer(CRC)has been increasing.With the popularization of endoscopic technology,a number of early CRC has been diagnosed.However,despite current treatment methods,some patients with early CRC still experience postoperative recurrence and metastasis.AIM To search for indicators associated with early CRC recurrence and metastasis to identify high-risk populations.METHODS A total of 513 patients with pT2N0M0 or pT3N0M0 CRC were retrospectively enrolled in this study.Results of blood routine test,liver and kidney function tests and tumor markers were collected before surgery.Patients were followed up through disease-specific database and telephone interviews.Tumor recurrence,metastasis or death were used as the end point of study to find the risk factors and predictive value related to early CRC recurrence and metastasis.RESULTS We comprehensively compared the predictive value of preoperative blood routine,blood biochemistry and tumor markers for disease-free survival(DFS)and overall survival(OS)of CRC.Cox multivariate analysis demonstrated that low platelet count was significantly associated with poor DFS[hazard ratio(HR)=0.995,95% confidence interval(CI):0.991-0.999,P=0.015],while serum carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA)level(HR=1.008,95%CI:1.001-1.016,P=0.027)and serum total cholesterol level(HR=1.538,95%CI:1.026-2.305,P=0.037)were independent risk factors for OS.The cutoff value of serum CEA level for predicting OS was 2.74 ng/mL.Although the OS of CRC patients with serum CEA higher than the cutoff value was worse than those with lower CEA level,the difference between the two groups was not statistically significant(P=0.075).CONCLUSION For patients with T2N0M0 or T3N0M0 CRC,preoperative platelet count was a protective factor for DFS,while serum CEA level was an independent risk factor for OS.Given that these measures are easier to detect and more acceptable to patients,they may have broader applications.