International Journal of Clinical Oncology最新文献

{"title":"From cell counts to cellular interactions: Cu-Cyto and the co-localization index as a spatial framework for the tumor immune microenvironment of rectal cancer.","authors":"Kimihiro Yamashita, Toru Nagasaka, Tomoki Abe, Yukari Adachi, Ryota Ito, Takaaki Tachibana, Toru Takahashi, Hiroki Kagiyama, Masaki Imai, Takao Tsuneki, Masayuki Ando, Yuna Asano, Kumiko Miyashita, Yasunori Otowa, Naoki Urakawa, Hironobu Goto, Hiroshi Hasegawa, Shingo Kanaji, Mitsugu Fujita, Takeru Matsuda, Ryohei Sasaki, Takumi Fukumoto, Yoshihiro Kakeji","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03182-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03182-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The tumor immune microenvironment in colorectal cancer has emerged as a major determinant of patient outcome, with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, particularly CD8⁺ T cells, mediating antitumor immunity. Standardized density-based metrics such as the Immunoscore have demonstrated prognostic value but cannot capture the spatial interactions among cells that underlie immune-tumor biology. We introduce a deep learning framework that integrates two complementary axes of analysis: Cu-Cyto, a deep learning-based image cytometry platform that detects and classifies approximately twenty cell types from standard immunohistochemistry-stained whole-slide images, using a bit-pattern kernel-filtering algorithm to prevent multi-counting and an off-target labeling strategy for precise nuclear-center localization; and the Co-Localization Index, which converts the classification probabilities and coordinates produced by Cu-Cyto into a single quantitative measure of co-localization between two or three cell types. We illustrate this framework through CD103⁺CD8⁺ tissue-resident memory-like T cells in rectal cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy: their stromal but not intratumoral density independently predicts relapse-free survival. This divergence, which compartment-aware density alone cannot explain, motivates a metric that captures within-compartment spatial relationships. The Co-Localization Index extends naturally to three-cell interactions, providing a quantitative readout of the tri-cellular biology among CD103⁺CD8⁺ T cells, tumor cells, and stromal components. Prospective validation in independent rectal-cancer cohorts, addressing watch-and-wait organ preservation and adjuvant chemotherapy decisions, will determine whether this spatial-cellular framework translates into routine clinical decision support with potential extension to other solid tumor contexts.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148911975","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The surrogacy of disease-free survival for overall survival in locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma after neoadjuvant therapy.","authors":"Feng Su, Xu Huang, Subinuer Maimaiti, Jun Yin, Lijie Tan, Yaxing Shen","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03188-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03188-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Disease-free survival (DFS) is increasingly proposed as a surrogate endpoint for overall survival (OS) in oncology trials, yet its validity in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unconfirmed. This study evaluated the surrogacy of DFS for OS in patients with locally advanced ESCC receiving neoadjuvant therapy.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Individual patient data from a prospectively maintained cohort of patients who underwent neoadjuvant therapy followed by radical esophagectomy (N = 578) were analyzed. Individual-level surrogacy was assessed by comparing long-term OS with expected survival in a demographically matched general population using standardized mortality ratios (SMR) and landmark analysis. Trial-level surrogacy was evaluated via weighted linear regression of treatment effects on DFS and OS across published clinical trials.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Patients remaining recurrence-free at 3 years achieved a 5-year OS rate of 93.0%, comparable to the matched general population (SMR = 0.935; 95% CI: 0.491-1.380). Conversely, early recurrence was associated with substantially worse outcomes, with a 51.3% absolute risk difference in 5-year OS between groups in landmark analysis. At the trial level, short-term DFS demonstrated a strong correlation with OS (R² = 0.776).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Short-term DFS is robustly correlated with long-term OS and may serve as a potential surrogate endpoint in locally advanced ESCC following neoadjuvant therapy, supported by both individual- and trial-level evidence. Patients achieving 3-year recurrence-free status exhibit long-term survival indistinguishable from the general population, reinforcing the clinical utility of DFS as an early efficacy marker in neoadjuvant trials.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148906231","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Gastrointestinal perforation associated with bevacizumab and palliative radiotherapy.","authors":"Kenji Makita, Masaki Nakamura, Yuichi Hiroshima, Hidenari Hirata, Masashi Wakabayashi, Saori Mishima, Akihito Kawazoe, Satoshi Saito, Sadamoto Zenda","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03191-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03191-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The risk of gastrointestinal (GI) perforation associated with bevacizumab (Bev) in patients undergoing palliative radiotherapy (RT) remains unclear. This study investigated the incidence of GI perforation in colorectal cancer patients treated with Bev and palliative RT.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We retrospectively reviewed colorectal cancer patients who received Bev and palliative RT involving the GI tract between January 2013 and December 2025. Bev and palliative RT were defined as treatment with Bev within 4 weeks before RT initiation or within 4 weeks after RT completion.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 109 patients were analyzed. Bev was administered before RT in 44 patients (40.4%), after RT in 34 (31.2%), and both before and after RT in 31 (28.4%). The most common RT regimen was 8 Gy in a single fraction (38.5%), followed by 20 Gy in 5 fractions (37.6%) and 30 Gy in 10 fractions (21.1%). The median follow-up from RT initiation was 223 days. GI perforation occurred in 3 patients (2.8%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.6-7.8%), with a 180-day cumulative incidence of 2.1% (95% CI, 0.4-6.6%). All perforations occurred in the rectum within the RT field; two occurred within the planning target volume and one outside it. Compromised GI wall within the RT field was significantly associated with GI perforation (p = 0.010).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The incidence of GI perforation was low in colorectal cancer patients treated with Bev and palliative RT. However, caution is warranted when compromised GI wall is present within the RT field.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148897287","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A multicenter retrospective study on the clinical features of patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive colorectal cancer (HGCSG2304).","authors":"Shiho Kaneko, Kentaro Sawada, Kazuteru Hatanaka, Masayoshi Dazai, Hiroshi Nakatsumi, Takayuki Ando, Masahito Kotaka, Yasushi Tsuji, Michio Nakamura, Osamu Muto, Takashi Meguro, Takahiro Ishii, Atsushi Sato, Susumu Sogabe, Shintaro Sawaguchi, Tatsuya Yokoyama, Koichi Ishida, Kazuaki Harada, Yasuyuki Kawamoto, Satoshi Yuki, Naoya Sakamoto, Yu Sakata, Yoshito Komatsu","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03193-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03193-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>In metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive disease is a molecular subtype for targeted therapy; however, real-world data remain limited.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A multicenter retrospective study of patients with HER2-positive mCRC diagnosed between 2010 and 2023 at 14 institutions in Japan was conducted. In patients with RAS wild-type tumors, outcomes were compared based on the molecular targeted agent (anti-epidermal growth factor receptor [EGFR] antibody or bevacizumab) combined with first-line chemotherapy. In patients treated with trastuzumab plus pertuzumab (Tmab+Per), outcomes and safety, with infusion-related reactions (IRRs) assessed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Forty-five patients were included. In patients with RAS wild-type tumors, outcomes were comparable between the anti-EGFR antibody (n = 17) and bevacizumab (n = 9) groups (progression-free survival: 15.6 vs. 12.0 months; hazard ratio: 0.94, 95% confidence interval: 0.38-2.35, overall survival: 38.4 vs. 32.0 months; hazard ratio: 0.91, 95% confidence interval: 0.30-2.74, p = 0.87). Twenty patients received Tmab+Per, with a median progression-free survival of 3.1 months and an objective response rate of 10%. Greater benefit was observed in patients with RAS wild-type and HER2 immunohistochemistry 3+ tumors (objective response rate 28.6%). IRRs occurred in 14.2% of patients receiving prophylactic antihistamines and 41.7% of those who did not (p = 0.35).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In patients with HER2-positive mCRC, first-line treatment efficacy appeared comparable between the anti-EGFR antibody and bevacizumab groups. Tmab+Per demonstrated modest activity, with greater benefit observed in patients with RAS wild-type and HER2 immunohistochemistry 3+ tumors. Appropriate patient selection and IRR management remain important.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148897255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Adverse event-related discontinuation of maintenance Bacillus Calmette-Guérin therapy and oncological outcomes in non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer.","authors":"Ryota Nakayasu, Akihiro Hamada, Toru Sakatani, Kei Mizuno, Takayuki Sumiyoshi, Kimihiko Masui, Takayuki Goto, Takashi Kobayashi, Yuki Kita","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03179-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03179-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Maintenance Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) therapy is a key component of treatment for intermediate-risk to high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) and an essential backbone for combination immunotherapy. However, its implementation remains limited by concerns regarding adverse events (AEs). We evaluated the association between AE-related discontinuation of maintenance BCG therapy and oncological outcomes.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We retrospectively investigated 228 patients with NMIBC who had received adequate induction BCG and were subsequently scheduled to receive 1 year of maintenance BCG therapy between 2007 and 2020. Patients were categorized into an AE-related discontinuation group, a discontinuation for other reasons group, and a maintenance completion group. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) was assessed using Kaplan-Meier curves. Confounding and time-dependent bias were addressed by propensity score matching and landmark analyses at 3, 6, and 12 months.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Overall, 108 patients discontinued maintenance BCG because of AEs, 38 discontinued for other reasons, and 82 completed therapy (completion rate, 36%). Five-year RFS did not differ significantly between the AE-related discontinuation group and the maintenance completion group (89.4% vs. 83.5%, p = 0.314). No significant difference in RFS was observed after propensity score matching (p = 0.46). Landmark analyses consistently showed that AE-related discontinuation was not associated with an increased risk of recurrence.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Among patients who had received adequate induction BCG and predominantly achieved adequate BCG exposure, AE-related discontinuation of maintenance BCG was not significantly associated with worse oncological outcomes. Concerns regarding tolerability should not necessarily preclude initiation of maintenance BCG.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148880302","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prophylactic intravenous dexamethasone is associated with reduced cutaneous toxicity during first-line enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab for locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma: a multicenter prospective cohort study.","authors":"Rikiya Taoka, Keita Tamura, Takuya Tsujino, Keita Kobayashi, Makito Miyake, Kohei Ogawa, Yutaro Sasaki, Shuichi Tatarano, Satoshi Katayama, Minoru Kato, Hideo Fukuhara, Yohei Abe, Yuki Oda, Ryoei Minato, Ryu Shigehisa, Teruo Inamoto, Haruhito Azuma, Koji Shiraishi, Kiyohide Fujimoto, Koichiro Wada, Junya Furukawa, Hideki Enokida, Motoo Araki, Junji Uchida, Keiji Inoue, Mikio Sugimoto","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03176-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03176-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Cutaneous toxicity is common during enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab, but evidence for prophylaxis is limited. We evaluated whether institutional prophylactic intravenous dexamethasone before enfortumab vedotin was associated with reduced cutaneous toxicity in locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This multicenter prospective cohort enrolled 172 patients at 11 Japanese institutions. Before enrollment, three institutions adopted fixed dexamethasone (6.6 mg) premedication and eight did not; policies remained unchanged, and patients were not individually allocated. The primary endpoint was any-grade skin reaction. Best radiographic response was a prospectively specified exploratory analysis, and progression-free survival (PFS) was evaluated post hoc.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Forty-one patients were treated under the dexamethasone-premedication policy and 131 under the no-premedication policy. Any-grade skin reactions occurred in 36.6% and 64.9% of patients, respectively (P = 0.003), and grade ≥ 2 reactions occurred in 14.6% and 35.1% (P = 0.022). Dexamethasone was independently associated with lower risks of any-grade (adjusted odds ratio, 0.35; 95% confidence interval, 0.16-0.76) and grade ≥ 2 reactions (adjusted odds ratio, 0.27; 95% confidence interval, 0.10-0.73). Cumulative enfortumab vedotin exposure through two cycles was similar. In exploratory analyses, objective response rates were 61.1% and 63.1%; median PFS was not reached, and 6-month PFS rates were 67.3% and 73.9%, respectively (hazard ratio, 1.28; 95% confidence interval, 0.68-2.39; log-rank P = 0.440).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>An institutional dexamethasone-premedication strategy was associated with reduced cutaneous toxicity during first-line enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab. Exploratory analyses found no significant differences in response or PFS; adequately powered studies with longer follow-up should determine whether dexamethasone premedication affects antitumor efficacy.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148880350","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Intratumoral heterogeneity of intermediate CLDN18.2 expression in gastric cancer.","authors":"Yusuke Kawanaka, Chiaki Inagaki, Masaki Okura, Seiichiro Mitani, Naoki Shiraishi, Kazuko Sakai, Kazuto Nishio, Yutaka Kimura, Yasutaka Chiba, Tomoko Wakasa, Hisato Kawakami, Hidetoshi Hayashi","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03118-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10147-026-03118-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>CLDN18.2-targeted therapies show promise in HER2-negative, CLDN18.2-positive advanced gastric cancer (GC); however, cutoffs defining CLDN18.2 positivity vary across studies. Tumors with high expression (moderate to strong membranous expression in ≥ 75% of tumor cells) generally exhibit intratumoral homogeneity and a uniform staining pattern, but intratumoral heterogeneity and staining pattern of CLDN18.2 at lower expression thresholds remains unclear. This study investigated intratumoral heterogeneity of CLDN18.2 by comparing inter-block concordance of expression levels and staining patterns in GC.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Eighty-six resected GC specimens were retrospectively analyzed using CLDN18.2 immunohistochemistry on two tissue blocks per tumor. CLDN18.2 expression was categorized as high (≥ 75%), intermediate (< 75% and ≥ 40%), or negative (< 40%), and staining patterns as uniform or variable. Inter-block concordance of expression levels and staining patterns and their influence on concordance and outcomes were assessed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Overall inter-block concordance of expression levels was high (77%, κ = 0.89). Discordance was substantially higher in intermediate expression tumors (63.5%) than in high (15.5%) or negative (19%) expression tumors. Uniform staining was observed exclusively in high expression tumors, whereas all intermediate expression tumors displayed variable staining (100%). Among high expression tumors, inter-block concordance was substantially higher with uniform staining (98.0%) than with variable staining (71.5%). CLDN18.2 expression and staining pattern heterogeneity were not associated with worse survival.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Significant intratumoral heterogeneity of CLDN18.2 expression was observed in GC, particularly in intermediate expression tumors; however, this heterogeneity does not affect survival. These results highlight the importance of standardized assessment methods when applying lower thresholds for CLDN18.2-targeted therapies.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":"2033-2042"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13506579/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148404644","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Current therapeutic interventions to target cancer stem cells for metastasis.","authors":"Priyancka Arora, Rakesh Bhatia, Sheetal Sharma, Anupam Sharma, Subhash C Chauhan, Jagmohan Singh, Anil Kumar Sharma","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03154-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10147-026-03154-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cancer metastasis contributes to the high mortality rate in patients and remains a significant challenge in treating solid malignancies. The limitations of current therapeutic interventions are underscored by the mere 5% survivorship of patients with metastatic disease. Since cancer stem cells (CSCs) are the major cause of metastatic spread, emerging therapeutic modalities specifically targeting CSCs present a lucrative approach to curtail metastatic disease. The literature demonstrating the promise of targeting CSCs to limit metastatic spread holds immense potential but remains scattered. This review provides concise knowledge of CSC targeting strategies and their impact on the metastatic burden in cancer patients. Current therapeutic strategies, early screening of cancer and reduction in smoking have drastically reduced the cancer-associated deaths by 34% in the US [1]. However, CSCs and therapy resistance pose major clinical challenges. Therefore, new way to address CSCs such as targeting stemness pathways, cellular plasticity and stress tolerance, nano theranostic approaches, the effect of phytochemicals and new radiotherapy technologies such as microbeam radiotherapy are being extensively studied. The detailed molecular studies on CSCs provide a platform for identifying factors intrinsic to cancer cells, host cells, and tumor microenvironment (TME) influencing stemness and overall metastasis. In addition to emerging anti-metastasis therapeutic modalities, the review provides information regarding exclusive targets and signalling molecules involved in metastasis. Simultaneous targeting of factors regulating CSCs and TME, along with standard of care therapies, proves a better strategy to tackle CSC heterogeneity and their adaptation for metastatic disease. Further approaches impacting CSCs offer a promising avenue for enhancing the effectiveness of cancer therapeutics and discovering new anti-metastatic drug candidates.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":"1791-1819"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148630235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Regimen-stratified prognostic associations do not support treatment selection in metastatic renal cell carcinoma.","authors":"Qiyi Lin","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03184-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-026-03184-y","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148873775","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy versus neoadjuvant chemoradioimmunotherapy for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.","authors":"Liqiang Shi, Yingyi Li, Chengqiang Li, Xipeng Wang, Qingchun Cai, Yuqin Cao, Fei Teng, Fei Liao, Hecheng Li, Zhiqiang Wang","doi":"10.1007/s10147-026-03093-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10147-026-03093-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Comparative evidence for neoadjuvant chemoimmunotherapy (NCIT) versus neoadjuvant immunotherapy combined with chemoradiotherapy (NICRT) in locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is limited. We compared pathological response and survival outcomes between these two strategies.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We retrospectively analyzed ESCC patients who received NCIT or NICRT followed by surgery between February 2019 and March 2025 at two centers. Pathological response, 2-year overall survival (OS), and disease-free survival (DFS) were compared between groups. Survival was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with the log-rank test. Propensity score matching (PSM) was applied to adjust for baseline imbalances.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among 212 patients, 110 received NICRT and 102 received NCIT. After PSM, NICRT yielded higher rates of major pathological response (MPR) (77.3% vs. 41.3%; p < 0.001) and pathological complete response (pCR) rates (46.7% vs. 22.7%; p = 0.004) compared with the NCIT. Lymph node yield was significantly higher in the NCIT group than in the NICRT group. (median: 21 vs. 17; p = 0.008). Besides, the perioperative safety and recurrence patterns were comparable between groups. However, 2-year OS (82.6% vs. 87.3%) and DFS (71.4% vs.79.0%) did not differ significantly between NICRT and NCIT groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>NICRT achieved superior pathological responses but did not improve 2-year survival compared with NCIT. Perioperative safety and recurrence patterns were similar between regimens. Prospective randomized controlled trials are needed to validate these findings.</p>","PeriodicalId":13869,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Clinical Oncology","volume":" ","pages":"1879-1889"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148224813","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}