Table 1.
Phase III studies using neo-adjuvant chemotherapy.
| Study | N | Study Population1 | Treatment | Result2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intergroup 0113 (Kelsen et al., 1998, 2007) | 443 | 54% Adeno, 46% SCC | Cis + 5-FU x3Cy before surgery followed by 2Cy after surgery vs. surgery only | 16.1 vs. 14.9 m; P = 0.53 |
| MRC (Medical Research Council Oesophageal Cancer Working Group, 2002) | 802 | 66% Adeno, 34% SCC | Cis + 5-FU x2Cy + surgery vs. surgery only | 16.8 vs. 13.3 m; P = 0.003 |
| MAGIC (Cunningham et al., 2006) | 503 | Adeno, 25% lower esophagus/EGJ | Peri-operative ECF3 + surgery vs. surgery only | 5 years survival 36 vs. 23% (95% CI: 16.6–29.4) |
| Boige et al. (2007) | 224 | Predominant gastric but included lower esophagus/EGJ | Cis + 5-FU x2-3 Cy + surgery vs. surgery only | 5 years survival 38 vs. 24% |
| JCOG 9907 (Ando et al., 2008; Hirao et al., 2011) | 330 | SCC | Cis + 5-FU x2 Cy before or after surgery | Neo-adjuvant chemo had superior OS; HR = 0.64 (95% CI: 0.45–0.91) |
N, number of patients; Adeno, adenocarcinoma; SCC, squamous cell carcinoma; Cis, cisplatin; 5-FU, 5-flurouracil; Cy, cycle; m, month; yr, year; EGJ, esophageal gastric junction; OS, overall survival; RT, radiation therapy. 1Esophageal cancer unless stated. 2Median overall survival unless stated. 3Chemotherapy consisted of three preoperative and three postoperative cycles of intravenous epirubicin 50 mg/m2 and cisplatin 60 mg/m2 on day 1, and a continuous intravenous infusion of fluorouracil 200 mg/m2 for 21 days.