Reduced Incidence of Nodal Micrometastasis after Major Response to Neoadjuvant Chemoradiation in Locally Advanced Esophageal Cancer

Background

Neoadjuvant treatment modalities for esophageal cancer were developed to improve local tumor control as well as to reduce lymph node metastases and distant metastases in patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer. The influence on nodal micrometastasis has not yet been evaluated.

Methods

This study includes 52 patients with localized (cT2-4, Nx, M0) esophageal cancers (21 adenocarcinomas, 31 squamous cell cancers) who received neoadjuvant chemoradiation (36Gy, 5-FU, cisplatin) followed by transthoracic en bloc esophagectomy with two field lymphadenectomy. The extent of histomorphologic regression was categorized into major (< 10%) and minor response (>10% vital residual tumor cells) as recently reported. A total of 1186 lymph nodes were diagnosed as negative for metastases by routine histopathological analysis and were further examined for the presence of isolated tumor cells with the monoclonal anti-epithelial antibody AE1/AE3.

Results

Twenty-two tumors (42.3%) showed a major histopathologic response whereas in 30 tumors (57.7%) only a minor response was present. Of 32 patients with a pN0 category, major response was present in 19 (59.4%) tumors, whereas 13 (40.6%) tumors showed minor response. Nine (69%) out of 13 patients with minor response had AE1/AE3-positive cells in their lymph nodes, whereas only four (21%) out of 19 pN0-patients with major response showed nodal micrometastasis (P = 0.013, χ²-test).

Conclusions

If tumors show a major histomorphologic response following neoadjuvant chemoradiation, the presence of nodal micrometastasis is significantly reduced compared to those with minor response.     

Bone marrow micrometastases and adjuvant treatment of breast cancer

The immunohistochemical detection of epithelially derived cells in the bone marrow of patients with primary breast cancer has been shown to be associated with increased risk of distant relapse as well as higher rates of cancer-related death. Despite the correlation between bone marrow micrometastases and poor outcome in breast cancer patients, bone marrow status does not yet have an established role in patient management. In this prospective study, adjuvant therapy recommendations for 43 patients with stage I, II, or III breast cancer treated with lumpectomy or mastectomy, sentinel lymph node biopsy and/or axillary dissection, and intraoperative bone marrow aspiration were recorded. Recommendations were made by a multidisciplinary tumor board both blinded and unblinded to the results of the bone marrow aspiration. In our study, 10 of the 43 breast cancer patients were found to have bone marrow micrometastases. Four of these patients (40%) had axillary lymph node metastases. When blinded to the results of the bone marrow aspiration, the tumor board recommended adjuvant chemotherapy for these four node-positive patients, as well as two node-negative patients. When unblinded to the results of the bone marrow aspiration, the tumor board did not change its recommendations for any of these six patients. The remaining four node-negative, bone marrow-positive patients were not advised to have adjuvant chemotherapy by the tumor board when blinded to bone marrow status. However, once the tumor board was informed of the presence of bone marrow micrometastases, adjuvant chemotherapy was recommended for all of these patients. The results of this pilot study indicate that the presence of bone marrow micrometastases in breast cancer patients with stage I, II, or III disease does influence recommendations for adjuvant chemotherapy, particularly in patients with node-negative disease.     

Impact of neoadjuvant therapy of perioperative morbidity in patients with esophageal cancer

BACKGROUND: Conflicting results of preoperative radiochemotherapy in patients with esophageal cancer have been obtained; only patients with a complete pathological response seem to benefit from this therapy. However, there is evidence that preoperative radiochemotherapy leads to considerable postoperative morbidity. Therefore, postoperative morbidity was retrospectively investigated in 82 patients with an esophageal cancer who received preoperative radiochemotherapy. METHODS: One hundred twenty-two consecutively operated on patients were included (1991 to 2001). Preoperative radiochemotherapy was initiated in 1994 for cT >1, cNx, cM0 regardless of histology (n = 82); 36 Gy was applied (1.8 Gy daily, days 1 to 5, weeks 1 to 4), concurrently 5-fluorouracil (500 mg/m(2) days 1 to 5, weeks 1 to 4), and cisplatin (20 mg/m(2) days 1 to 5, weeks 1 and 4). Postoperative morbidity was categorized as surgery- and nonsurgery-related morbidity. Survival was calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Results were stratified into histology and compared with patients who were operated on only (n = 40). RESULTS: Complete pathological response after preoperative radiochemotherapy was achieved in 22%. An increase in surgery-related morbidity was observed after preoperative radiochemotherapy due to lesion of recurrent nerve (38% versus 12.5%, P = 0.009), as well as a marked difference in pulmonary morbidity (57% versus 37.5%, P = 0.05). The proportion of combined morbidity was increased after preoperative radiochemotherapy (49.4% versus 15%, P = 0.02), which led to a considerable prolongation of postoperative hospital stay (33 versus 21 days median, P = 0.0022). Patients with a longer postoperative hospital stay (>30 days; 43.2%) lived significantly shorter than patients with a shorter postoperative hospital stay (56.8%, P = 0.001). There was no statistical survival benefit in the neoadjuvant treated group. However, calculation of long-term survival revealed a significant survival advantage in patients with squamous cell cancer and a complete pathological response compared with patients without response (median 642 days versus 302, P = 0.026). CONCLUSIONS: Perioperative morbidity was significantly increased after preoperative radiochemotherapy. Long-term survival was clearly affected by the length of postoperative stay. Therefore, we need better patient selection for application of preoperative radiochemotherapy.     

术前放化疗加胸腹腔镜联合手术在局部中晚期食管癌中的应用体会

目的评估术前放化疗加胸腹腔镜联合手术治疗局部中晚期食管癌的可行性及近期疗效。方法2011年6月至2012年2月间浙江省台州医院共对11例局部中晚期（ⅡB-ⅢA期）食管癌患者予以术前放化疗加胸腹腔镜联合手术。术前化疗采取NP方案（长春瑞滨加顺铂）或TP方案（紫杉醇加顺铂）静脉注射;同期采用常规分割放疗,放疗剂量40Gy／20d。放化疗后4～6周施行胸腹腔镜联合经右胸、上腹、左颈三切口食管癌切除术。结果11例患者均完成预定同步放疗方案,期间9例出现不同程度的骨髓抑制。放化疗结束至手术的时间为（49．6±15．4）d。术中除1例患者（放化疗后75d手术）局部纤维化形成外,其余10例患者手术难度并未增加：与同期15例行单纯腔镜食管切除术的患者相比,手术时间明显缩短[（242．3±27．0）min比（280．5±27．2）min,P=0．002],术中出血量明显减少[（168．2±95．6）ml比（244．5±84．8）ml,P=0．042],淋巴结清扫数量相当[（19．5±5．8）枚／例比（20．5±7．1）枚／例,P=0．683],但术后住院时间延长[（18．9±10．3）d比（12．5±4．6）d,P=-0．020]。术后病理示,4例瘤体明显缩小,7例达到病理完全缓解。术后并发症发生率36．4％（4／11）,其中颈部吻合口瘘并肺部感染1例、颈部吻合口瘘并声嘶1例、肺部感染并胸腔积液2例。术后随访1～9个月,未见肿瘤复发。结论术前放化疗加胸腹腔镜联合手术治疗局部中晚期食管癌安全、可行．近期疗效确切。     

Importance of missed axillary micrometastases in breast cancer patients

Axillary lymph node metastases dramatically worsen the prognosis of patients with breast cancer. Despite this prognostic significance, routine histologic examination of axillary lymph nodes examines less than 1% of the submitted material. It is therefore obvious that micrometastatic disease is missed with this rather cursory examination, and the question arises as to the significance of this missed disease. Most lines of evidence suggest that missed axillary micrometastases exist and contribute to patient mortality. Most large studies of breast cancer micrometastases have suggested that undetected axillary micrometastases can be identified with more detailed examinations of the regional lymph nodes and that this group of patients has a poorer prognosis than those with no metastases identified. In addition, small-volume nodal disease, too small to be detected by traditional hematoxylin and eosin staining, has been shown to be capable of producing tumors in animal models. Finally, micrometastases have been shown to be of significance in other diseases. This article reviews the lines of evidence and the ongoing studies that are attempting to clarify the significance of micrometastatic disease in patients with breast cancer.     

Lymph node micrometastases in patients with adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction

Recurrences of adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction are frequent even in patients who are classified as pN0 after radical resection, suggesting that occult nodal metastases may have been missed on routine histologic examination. Immunohistochemical analysis using antibodies to cytokeratin was retrospectively performed in 1301 lymph nodes from 46 patients who tmderwent surgical resection for adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction through a laparotomy and a right thoracotomy. Compared to routinely stained sections, the total number of metastatic lymph nodes was significantly (P = 0.0001) increased when both serial sectioning and anticytokeratin immunohistochemical analysis were performed. Overall 6 (33.3 %) of the 18 patients previously considered NO were recategorized as NI for the presence of micrometastases to lesser curvature nodes. Three of these patients had recurrent disease within the first year of follow-up. Both the probability of survival or no recurrence and the disease-free survival were significantly greater in patients in whom the ratio of invaded to removed lymph nodes was less than 0.2. Anticytokeratin analysis identified occult nodal metastases in one third of our patients with adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction. This modified tumor staging and had an impact on overall and diseasefree survival. Supported by grants from the Fondazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro and the lstituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, Ospedale Maggiore.     

新辅助治疗对食管癌患者手术前后营养状况的影响

目的分析新辅助治疗后食管癌患者手术前后营养状态的变化。 方法选择2017年5月1日—2019年5月31日在河北医科大学第四医院胸外科住院治疗的食管癌患者142例,通过电子病历系统收集这些患者的临床病历资料。比较新辅助治疗后患者手术前后各项生化指标的变化,包括血清前白蛋白(PA)、白蛋白(Alb)、总蛋白(TP)、球蛋白(Glob)、血红蛋白(Hgb)、淋巴细胞总数(TLC)、谷丙转氨酶(GPT)、谷草转氨酶(GOT)、肌酐(Cr)和尿素氮(UN)。 结果与手术前比较,患者手术后营养指标Alb、PA、TP、Hgb、Glob、TLC水平均显著降低,差异有统计学意义(P<0.001)。手术后肝功能指标GPT和GOT水平均较手术前明显升高,差异有统计学意义(P<0.001);但Cr和UN水平虽较手术前略有增加,但差异均无统计学意义(P>0.05)。 结论手术治疗显著降低了新辅助食管癌患者的营养状况,对患者的肝功能影响较大,应引起临床医师的重视,及时实施营养干预措施,改善患者的术后营养状况。     

Increased risk of thromboembolism in esophageal cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy

Background

Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) in esophageal cancer (EC) patients may increase the formation of thromboembolic events (TEEs). We analyzed the incidence and impact of TEEs in EC patients treated with platinum-based CRT.

Methods

A total of 336 patients with EC underwent an esophagectomy, of which 110 patients received neoadjuvant CRT (41.4 Gy with concurrent Carboplatin/Paclitaxel). Patients were matched based on pre- and perioperative characteristics.

Results

Preoperatively, 9 (8.2%) patients with neoadjuvant CRT (P = .004) were diagnosed with TEEs. Despite delay until surgery (P = .021), the postoperative course did not differ. In multivariate analysis, a history of deep vein thrombosis (P = .005) and neoadjuvant CRT (P = .004) were identified as risk factors. Postoperatively, there were no differences in TEEs (P = .560) observed. In multivariate analysis, a history of pulmonary embolism (P = .012) was identified as a risk factor for postoperative TEEs.

Conclusions

Preoperatively, EC patients treated with neoadjuvant CRT have an increased risk to develop a TEE, especially those with a previous history of TEE. After surgery no increased incidence was observed. We recommend secondary prophylaxis during neoadjuvant treatment in this high-risk group.     

Neoadjuvant treatment: A window of opportunity for nutritional prehabilitation in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

Patients affected by pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) frequently present with advanced disease at the time of diagnosis, limiting an upfront surgical approach. Neoadjuvant treatment (NAT) has become the standard of care to downstage non-metastatic locally advanced PDAC. However, this treatment increases the risk of a nutritional status decline, which in turn, may impact therapeutic tolerance, postoperative outcomes, or even prevent the possibility of surgery. Literature on prehabilitation programs on surgical PDAC patients show a reduction of postoperative complications, length of hospital stay, and readmission rate, while data on prehabilitation in NAT patients are scarce and randomized controlled trials are still missing. Particularly, appropriate nutritional management represents an important therapeutic strategy to promote tissue healing and to enhance patient recovery after surgical trauma. In this regard, NAT may represent a new interesting window of opportunity to implement a nutritional prehabilitation program, aiming to increase the PDAC patient’s capacity to complete the planned therapy and potentially improve clinical and survival outcomes. Given these perspectives, this review attempts to provide an in-depth view of the nutritional derangements during NAT and nutritional prehabilitation program as well as their impact on PDAC patient outcomes.     

多学科协作诊治模式下结直肠癌不同周期新辅助化疗联合手术的方案研究

目的 通过在多学科协作诊治模式下运用不同周期的结直肠癌新辅助化疗联合手术的多种方案,探讨适合于我国结直肠癌患者的有效治疗方案.方法 回顾性研究了2006年10月至2007年4月期间四川大学华西医院普外三科收治的结直肠癌患者,并根据新辅助化疗的周期数将资料分为单周期组、双周期组和三周期组,比较3组在运用不同周期新辅助化疗和手术的联合方案下治疗时间、新辅助化疗效果、手术结果 等指标之间的差异.结果 从新辅助化疗完成到手术时间3组[单周期组(5.64±2.00)d,双周期组(5.80±3.74)d,三周期组(6.22±2.76)d]间差异无统计学意义(P＞0.05).从治疗效果上看,3组内新辅助化疗后较化疗前的CEA值均有下降(P<01)；双周期组和三周期组患者的便血、肛门坠胀/刺激感、大便不畅感等主观感受指标比单周期组明显改善(P＜0.01).在评估肿瘤病灶缓解情况中,双周期组和三周期组中出现CR和PR的构成比较单周期组更多,肿瘤缓解率(CR+PR)更高(P＜0.01).而新辅助化疗的治疗不良反应中,新辅助化疗后较化疗前的WBC值在双周期组和三周期组内均明显下降(P＜0.01),新辅助化疗前后WBC差值,在单周期组[(0.16±0.20)×109/L]分别比双周期组[(2.41±2.16)×109/L]和三周期组[(2.63±1.48)×109/L]下降更少(P＜0.01).三周期组的恶心和呕吐反应明显多于单周期组(P＜0.01)和双周期组(P＜0.01)；但是腹胀和腹泻反应在3组之间差异无统计学意义(P＞0.05).采用不同的新辅助化疗周期患者对方案接受程度的调查发现,单周期组和双周期组对于方案的接受程度均为100％,并表示有信心进行辅助化疗；而三周期组的方案接受率为66.7％(12/18).所有患者均顺利完成手术,手术后肛门排气时间单周期组与双周期组间差异有统计学意义(P＜0.05)；术后进食时间,三周期组与单周期组、三周期组与双周期组的患者之间的差异均有统计学意义(P＜O.05).而3组在伤口愈合时间上差异无统计学意义(P＞0.05).结论 综合分析新辅助化疗周期与手术安排之间的时间、治疗效果和手术结果 ,选择双周期短时间的新辅助治疗方案对我国西部地区患者可能是一套具有可行性和安全性的结直肠癌多学科治疗方案.     

Tissue factor predicts response to chemotherapy in esophageal cancer

Background

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) improves the prognosis of patients with esophageal cancer who respond, but it is not effective in nonresponders. Therefore, it is crucial to establish a reliable method of predicting response before initiation of chemotherapy. Hypercoagulability, which is thought to be because of upregulation of tissue factor (TF) in cancer cells, was reported to be associated with chemoresistance. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between TF expression and response to NACT in esophageal cancer.

Methods

In 67 patients with advanced esophageal cancer, TF expression in pretreatment biopsy samples was evaluated immunohistochemically and correlated with clinicopathologic factors and response to chemotherapy.

Results

TF was expressed by 43.3% of the tumors, but there were no correlations observed with any clinicopathologic parameters examined. Clinical and histologic responses to chemotherapy were significantly worse in TF-positive patients compared with TF-negative patients. Multivariate analysis revealed that TF expression was significantly associated with a poor clinical response (P = 0.0431). TF expression was also independently associated with poor progression-free survival (P = 0.0353).

Conclusions

TF expression levels in pretreatment biopsy samples are useful for predicting response to NACT in advanced esophageal cancer. Further studies of mechanisms underlying the relationship between TF expression and chemosensitivity are needed.     

Neoadjuvant Treatment for Resectable Cancer of the Esophagus and the Gastroesophageal Junction: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Background: There is no general agreement on the effect of neoadjuvant treatment for esophageal cancer on patient survival.Methods: A meta-analysis was performed to determine the effect of preoperative treatment on survival of patients with resectable esophageal cancer and the effect of preoperative treatment on patient mortality. A standard variance-based method was used to derive summary estimates of the absolute difference in both 2-year survival and treatment-related mortality.Results: Eleven randomized trials involving 2311 patients were analyzed. Preoperative chemotherapy improved 2-year survival compared with surgery alone: the absolute difference was 4.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], .3%–8.5%). Marginal evidence of heterogeneity was eliminated by restricting attention to the four most recent studies, which increased the estimate to 6.3% (95% CI, 1.8%–10.7%). For combined chemoradiotherapy, the increase was 6.4% (nonsignificant; 95% CI, –1.2%–14.0%). Treatment-related mortality increased by 1.7% with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (95% CI, –.9%—4.3%) and by 3.4% with chemoradiotherapy (95% CI, –.1%–7.3%), compared with surgery alone.Conclusions: There seems to be a modest survival advantage for patients who receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery, as compared with surgery alone. There is an apparent increase in treatment-related mortality, mainly for patients who receive neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy.     

Endoscopic ultrasound: impact on survival in patients with esophageal cancer

BACKGROUND: Esophageal carcinoma is an aggressive malignancy and long-term survival is poor. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) is an additional staging modality to assess locoregional extent of this disease. We hypothesized that EUS may improve survival through more effective staging and better optimization of treatment. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of all patients presenting with esophageal cancer at our institution from 1993 to 2003 (n = 97) and compared outcomes between patients who underwent staging EUS and computed tomography (CT) versus CT alone. Survival was calculated using Kaplan-Meier methods and compared between groups using the log-rank test. Mean survival was compared using analysis of variance (ANOVA) methods. RESULTS: Overall 3-, 6-, and 12-month survival did not differ between the 2 groups (EUS: 92%, 84%, and 80% and CT: 83%, 67%, and 43%, log-rank P = .1), which held true despite stratification by treatment modality (all P >.1). The mean survival for the EUS group was 16 +/- 3 months and for the CT group, 12 +/- 1.5 months (P = .2). Further analysis by stage showed no difference in survival between the 2 groups (all P >.1). However, stage 2A and 3 surgical patients had better survival than nonsurgical patients (both P = .02) irrespective of staging modality. EUS patients were no more likely to receive surgical, neoadjuvant, or definitive chemoradiation than CT patients (all P >.1). CONCLUSIONS: Overall survival as well as survival by stage did not differ between patients who underwent staging via EUS and CT versus CT alone, and patients staged with EUS were not more likely to receive any one intervention. Irrespective of staging modality, stage 2A and 3 patients who underwent surgical intervention had better survival than those who did not receive an operation.     

Two cases of cisplatin-induced permanent renal failure following neoadjuvant chemotherapy for esophageal cancer

IntroductionWe experienced two esophageal cancer patients who developed severe acute renal failure after neoadjuvant chemotherapy with cisplatin and 5-fluorourasil.Presentation of caseAfter administration of cisplatin, their serum creatinine increased gradually until they required hemodialysis and their renal failure was permanent. In both cases, renal biopsy examination indicated partial recovery of the proximal tubule, but renal function did not recover. After these events, one patient underwent definitive radiotherapy and the other underwent esophagectomy for their esophageal cancers, while continuing dialysis. Both patients are alive without cancer recurrence.DiscussionIn these two cases of cisplatin-induced renal failure, renal biopsy examination showed only slight disorder of proximal tubules and tendency to recover.ConclusionAlthough cisplatin-related nephrotoxicity is a well-recognized complication, there have been few reports of renal failure requiring hemodialysis in cancer patients. In this report, we present their clinical courses and the pathological findings of cisplatin-related renal failure.     

Accuracy of pathologic examination in detection of complete response after chemoradiation for esophageal cancer

BACKGROUND: Although a substantial proportion of patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiation for invasive esophageal cancer develop a pathologic complete response (pCR), these patients nonetheless have a poor 5-year survival rate. We hypothesized that routine pathologic examination fails to identify some residual cancer. METHODS: Patients undergoing esophagectomy for cancer at 2 tertiary care centers were identified. Archived tumor blocks were retrieved for patients with pCR, sectioned at 50-mum intervals and reexamined for residual cancer. RESULTS: Seventy patients underwent neoadjuvant chemoradiation. Tumor blocks were available for 23 of 26 complete responders. A total of 159 blocks were reexamined. One patient was found to have a possible focus of residual invasive adenocarcinoma versus high-grade dysplasia. The remaining 22 patients had no residual disease. CONCLUSIONS: A more aggressive examination protocol for postchemoradiation esophagectomy specimens may not result in significant upstaging. Inadequate pathologic examination is likely not a major factor in the suboptimal survival in patients with pCR.     

Neoadjuvant therapy in triple-negative breast cancer: A systematic review and network meta-analysis

BackgroundEvidence for the preferred neoadjuvant therapy regimen in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is not yet established.MethodsLiterature search was conducted from inception to February 12, 2022. Phase 2 and 3 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating neoadjuvant therapy for TNBC were eligible. The primary outcome was pathologic complete response (pCR); the secondary outcomes were all-cause treatment discontinuation, disease-free survival or event-free survival (DFS/EFS), and overall survival. Odd ratios (OR) with 95% credible intervals (CrI) were used to estimate binary outcomes; hazard ratios (HR) with 95% CrI were used to estimate time-to-event outcomes. Bayesian network meta-analysis was implemented for each endpoint. Sensitivity analysis and network meta-regression were done.Results41 RCTs (N = 7109 TNBC patients) were eligible. Compared with anthracycline- and taxane-based chemotherapy (ChT), PD-1 inhibitor plus platinum plus anthracycline- and taxane-based ChT was associated with a significant increased pCR rate (OR 3.95; 95% CrI 1.81–9.44) and a higher risk of premature treatment discontinuation (3.25; 1.26–8.29). Compared with dose-dense anthracycline- and taxane-based ChT, the combined treatment was not associated with significantly improved pCR (OR 2.57; 95% CrI 0.69–9.92). In terms of time-to-event outcomes, PD-1 inhibitor plus platinum plus anthracycline- and taxane-based ChT was associated with significantly improved DFS/EFS (HR 0.42; 95% CrI 0.19–0.81).ConclusionsPD-1 inhibitor plus platinum and anthracycline- and taxane-based ChT was currently the most efficacious regimen for pCR and DFS/EFS improvement in TNBC. The choice of chemotherapy backbone, optimization of patient selection with close follow-up and proactive symptomatic managements are essential to the antitumor activity of PD-1 inhibitor.     

Usefulness of positron emission tomography for assessing the response of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in patients with esophageal cancer

BACKGROUND: In this study, we retrospectively assessed the performance of 18-F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) compared with computed tomography (CT) and esophagography for assessing the response of advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. METHODS: We studied 10 patients with thoracic esophageal SCC who received neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy followed by surgery. Tumor response was assessed by CT, endoscopy, esophagography and FDG-PET before and after neoadjuvant treatment. RESULTS: Assessment of the rate of decrease in standardized uptake value (SUV) revealed a partial response (more than 50% decrease) in 5 (50%) of the patients, and assessment of length decrease of FDG uptake showed a partial response in 9 (90%) of the patients. Comparison of the histological response and the rate of decrease of various parameters revealed significant associations between histological response and tumor length (P <0.05), SUV after neoadjuvant therapy (P <0.05), and reduction in the extent of FDG uptake (P <0.01). However histological response was not significantly correlated with the rate of reduction of SUV, for both CT and esophagography. CONCLUSIONS: FDG-PET may be of considerable value for predicting the pathologic response of esophageal SCC to neoadjuvant therapy. Despite assessment of SUV before neoadjuvant therapy, low FDG uptake after therapy and reduction in the extent of FDG uptake may provide a reliable assessment of the response to therapy.