New insights in the adjuvant treatment of gastric cancer

The current standard treatment of patients with gastric cancer is partial or total stomach resection and dissection of the draining lymph nodes. This approach, however, results in a rather low survival rate, partly because the diagnosis is often established in an advanced stage. Various strategies, including adjuvant radiotherapy, chemotherapy or more extensive surgical procedures, have resulted mainly in increased morbidity without improving survival. In a recent randomised trial, concurrent postoperative radiotherapy and chemotherapy prolonged survival and reduced the chance of a local recurrence at an acceptable toxicity. Although several aspects of combined radiochemotherapy require further study, this new treatment concept appears to be a promising addition to the therapeutic arsenal for gastric cancer.